Systema
by AFatFlyingWhale
Summary: The System awakes, and so does Jaune Arc. Of course, one is awakening from an eons long slumber and the other went to bed too late the night before and slept in far too long. The System adjusts to a methodology suitable for a teenage boy, and as such accidentally invokes the god-given right of living a video game. Jaune's in for a wild ride.
1. Bedroom Woes

**Something new, and something not so new. This is my take on a Gamer fic, which, whilst it has been done to death, I felt like giving a shot. You never know, maybe it'll be great. Or it'll end up like all the others, scattered across the cutting room floor like as many fic ideas I go through in my mind.**

 **As dreary as that sounds, I've already got two and a bit chapters written as of uploading this chapter, and despite that I'll be doing one chapter a week. This shouldn't detract from the admittedly long gaps between my other fics, however, so GONL will still be updated soonish. I'm kind of stuck on a part of the latest chapter, sorry about that.**

 **This fic will be taking heavy inspiration from those that came before, but it has my own spin on a few things, including not actually calling it 'The Gamer', 'cause that actually annoys me for some reason, I can't really put my finger on it. (I don't mean the original, by the way.)**

 **Anyways, enjoy the preliminary chapter, and I'm sorry about the info dumps. I'm still trying to get the hang of it.**

 **EDIT: Aw fuck, FanFiction doesn't like my arrows. Oh well.**

* * *

Waking up was a completely normal thing that people did everyday, without fail, and nothing weird ever happened when they did.

So why, why, why did something weird have to happen to Jaune Arc when he woke up.

"Ah!" Jaune cried out as he opened his eyes, rolling sideways in surprise and thumping noisily to the wooden floor.

"Ah!" Jaune cried out again as he touched the planks, the wood being much colder than the lovely warmth that was his bed.

"Ah!" Jaune cried out a third time when he remembered that the weird thing that made him roll out of bed, which was still there.

Small, light-blue and hovering, the two-dimensional rectangle floated in front of Jaune's face as menacingly as a small, light-blue, hovering two-dimensional rectangle could possibly be, when considering the fact that it had rather friendly looking font on the front.

 **[Welcome to the System, brought to you by the spontaneous awakening of your semblance, despite your obvious lack of Aura!]**

"Ah!" Jaune cried out a fourth time once he had finished reading what the hovering mildly-menacing two-dimensional rectangle had written on it, its light-blue glow glowing light-blue-y.

At this point, there is only so much one can do to describe the rather odd experience Jaune was, well, experiencing.

Jaune stared at what was undoubtedly some kind of hallucination for a good couple minutes, willing it away with his mind.

What he was actually doing was staring blankly at the floating rectangle without a single thought passing through his mind, the teen completely stunned.

"Ah?" Jaune said, practically creating his own language at this point. Luckily, Jaune was fluent in confusion, as was evident when the door to his bedroom opened.

"Jaune? What are you doing?" His mother, Juniper Arc, asked, a concerned look on her face.

"Ah…" Jaune began, adding to his rather enormous lexicon thus far.

To the un-addled mind, one would notice that the floating rectangle was, in fact, either invisible to everyone else, or a simple hallucination.

To Jaune's addled mind, however, the only thing he could really formulate was the fact that it was morning, and he was rather peckish.

Thankfully, his mother simply sighed and shook her head, before preparing herself to walk away. "Jaune, breakfast is ready and waiting, so whenever you are done staring into space come down, okay?"

"Yeah…" Jaune replied, adding an entirely new syllable to his impromptu language, therefore dictating him the most intelligent person alive who could speak that language. Of which he already was, so it wasn't really a big benefit to social rank.

Or any rank.

Or anything.

What was he doing?

The door to his room closed with a quiet ker-chunk, and Jaune snapped his gaze right back at the offending rectangle.

"What are you?" Jaune asked, using actual coherent words to form a proper sentence for the first time this morning.

Of course, Jaune was talking to a floating rectangle, so the response was about what would be expected.

For those of you at home who can't imagine what that would be, write something on a piece of paper, hold it in front of you, and ask the same question as above.

Jaune stared at the rectangle some more, before noticing a detail he'd somehow missed the first couple minutes of dead-eyed staring he'd done.

A little cross in the top right stared back at him, figuratively of course, a real cross staring would've made the sole Arc male freak out even more and that wouldn't be very good for the teen's mental health, which was already deteriorating at a rather rapid rate.

Jaune contemplated sticking a finger out and poking the proffered solution to what was starting to seem like a serious problem.

One second passed, a second second passed. A third, a fourth.

On the fifth, Jaune bit the barrel and stuck his index finger out and quickly poked the cross.

The rectangle disappeared.

"Ah!" Jaune cried out once again, regressing back to the lesser language as he recoiled.

A new floating rectangle appeared, and once Jaune got over the shock of seeing it appear, he began to read.

 **[Would you like to run the Tutorial for the System?]**

"Yes?" Jaune said aloud, doubting his sanity with each syllable.

 **[Running System Tutorial.]**

Jaune watched in shock as the rectangle changed, and slowly reformed around him, boxes of information presenting themselves.

 **[Your Aura, for unknown reasons, triggered itself whilst you slept, and with it your semblance awakened. Due to the nature of your semblance, your Aura has been re-locked temporarily, but will be unlocked after certain criteria are met.]**

 **[Your semblance, the System, is a mechanism that interacts with the known universe in ways unheard of prior to its awakening. Due to the complexity of your semblance, the System has designed its own Tutorial for you to progress through in order to understand the basics, and to form a comprehensive starter understanding in order for you to be capable of developing your semblance correctly.]**

 **[-][-]**

Jaune quickly read through the rather complicated text that floated in front of him, before poking the next button.

 **[The System is much like a video game, primarily RPGs. The System grants you Stats, Skills and Abilities, Quests, and various other tropes from video games. Firstly, say or think 'Stats' to bring up your Stats menu.]**

 **[-][Say or Think 'Stats']**

Jaune blinked. "Stats?" He said aloud, taking an involuntary step back as a much larger blue rectangle spawned itself into existence in front of him.

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: N/A]**

 **[Level: 1]**

 **[XP: 0/1000]**

 **[HP: 100/100]**

 **[SP: 100/100]**

 **[MP: 100/100]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[STR: 10]**

 **[END: 10]**

 **[AGI: 10]**

 **[INT: 10]**

 **[WIS: 10]**

 **[CHA: 10]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 0]**

 **[Lien: 0]**

"Woah," Jaune muttered.

 **[Your Stats affect your physical and mental capabilities, including but not limited to strength, intelligence and charisma, amongst others. Your Stats also measures your health, stamina, mana and Aura, along with Experience Points. Would you like the System to go into more detail about these?]**

 **[-][Skip Details][-]**

Jaune poked the right arrow with his index finger, still a little flummoxed.

 **[Health, measured in Stats as HP, or Hit Points, is a numerical indicator of your physical health. It is affected by the Endurance stat. Stamina, measured in Stats as SP, is a numerical indicator of your physical exhaustion. It is also affected by the Endurance stat. Mana, measured in Stats as MP, is a numerical indicator of the magical energy that you have at your disposal. It is affected by the Intelligence stat, for its total capacity, and the Wisdom stat, for its regeneration. Aura, measured in stats as AP, is a numerical indicator of your Aura, which is the physical manifestation of the soul. Unlike all other semblances, the System does not require Aura to function. AP is affected by the Endurance stat. Experience Points, measured in Stats as XP, is a numerical indicator of how much experience you have gained, and how close you are to achieving a new level. Experience Points will be delved into at a later point in the Tutorial.]**

 **[-][-]**

Jaune dead-stared at the block of text, slowly but surely absorbing the information presented. He poked the right arrow once he was finished, internally hoping for less information, and yet paradoxically hoping for more.

 **[Each Stat corresponds to a physical or mental attribute that affects both your numerical indicators, and your actual existence. STR, or Strength, affects muscle mass, and allows you to carry more, hit harder and throw further, for example. END, or Endurance, affects overall fitness, and allows you to sprint longer, fight longer and take more hits, for example. AGI, or Agility, affects dexterity and reactions, and allows you to dodge easier, aim better and be more nimble, for example. INT, or Intelligence, affects Intelligence Quotient, or how smart you can be, and allows you to think smarter, plan better and have access to more mana, for example. WIS, or Wisdom, affects how you use intelligence, and allows you to plan for foolishness, amongst other things, and allows your access to mana to regenerate faster, for example. CHA, or Charisma, affects how charming you are, and allows you to woo people, convince them of things, and otherwise hold a more social position easier, for example. LCK, or Luck, affects how lucky you are, and allows you to be more likely to succeed in random chance, for example.]**

 **[-][-]**

Jaune scanned through the information, perking up as he read it. His semblance allowed him to directly increase his stats, which directly correlated to his own physical and mental presence? That was incredible, if it wasn't all just one big fever dream. He pressed the next arrow.

 **[The System gives you access to Skills and Abilities, both active and passive. Some skills will be almost negligible in effect, but some could be considered semblances on their own. Say or think 'Skills' to open the Skills and Abilities menu.]**

 **[-][Say or Think 'Skills']**

Jaune did as he was bid. "Skills."

 **[Skills:]**

 **[** _ **System Mind (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you now possess a mind immune to all negative effects, and you can now nullify potentially negative emotions._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

 **[** _ **System Body (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you now possess a body that heals rapidly from injuries, even from any loss of limb, decapitation, or other debilitating injury, unless you bypass your HP total._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

 **[You will notice that you currently possess two skills; System Mind and System Body. Both of these skills are passive, meaning they are active at all times, and are both at Level MAX, meaning that they cannot increase in level, as they have already reached the maximum level they can. Skills and Abilities can be acquired multiple ways. Certain items count as Skill Books, and consuming a Skill Book can provide a skill. If you already know the skill the Skill Book provides, you gain an experience boost towards that skill. Another way to acquire skills is to create them yourself, by performing a certain action. Try jumping.]**

 **[-][Try Jumping]**

Jaune coiled his legs, and pushed off the ground, leaping a solid foot off the ground, before thudding against the wooden planks of his bedroom floor.

A dinging noise made Jaune yelp.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Jump (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now improve on your jumping! A Jump costs 1SP, and you can Jump 0.1ft x STR high per Jump. Aura may be consumed to increase Jump height at 1AP per 5ft._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/100.**_ **]**

It took Jaune a moment to calculate how high he could jump at the moment. Coincidentally, it was one foot, so so far so good.

 **[You may notice that you have 1/1000 XP towards leveling Jump. This is not XP gained towards total level, however.]**

 **[-][-]**

Jaune pressed the next arrow, intent of figuring it all out.

 **[As you complete Quests, kill enemies and accomplish goals, you will gain Experience Points. Every point of XP accrued does multiple things, depending on how it is acquired. Killing a monster that awards 100XP would provide 100XP to the XP Meter, which gets you 100XP closer to leveling up, which rewards you with skill points and upping the level limit as to which skills can reach. It would also reward 50XP to whatever skills or abilities was used whilst killing the monster, and give 50XP to the XP Meter that is assigned to a title, if one is equipped and requires XP.]**

 **[-][-]**

Another poke of the arrow, and he was expecting more information. Jaune was already starting to get tired.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Learning The System.**_ **]**

 **[Complete the Tutorial!]**

 **[Reward: 1000 XP, 20 Lien]**

"Huh," Jaune said once again, starting to repeat himself.

 **[This is a Quest. Completing Quests is a surefire way to profit in multiple ways, from Lien to XP. All Quests will have rewards, but some will also have penalties for failure, and some will even have penalties for completion.]**

 **[-][-]**

Jaune sat down on his bed, index finger poking the next arrow.

 **[The Tutorial is almost complete, but the Hint Mechanic is still toggled on, and will periodically provide hints about certain mechanics of the System.]**

 **[Quest Completed!]**

 **[** _ **Learning The System.**_ **]**

 **[Complete the Tutorial]**

 **[Reward: 1000 XP, 20 Lien]**

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 2!]**

 **[+5 Skill Points!]**

Jaune almost fell out of his bed a second time that morning as the influx of notifications popped up, startling him.

"Stats," Jaune said far more confidently than he felt.

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: N/A]**

 **[Level: 2]**

 **[XP: 0/2000]**

 **[HP: 100/100]**

 **[SP: 100/100]**

 **[MP: 100/100]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[STR: 10]**

 **[END: 10]**

 **[AGI: 10]**

 **[INT: 10]**

 **[WIS: 10]**

 **[CHA: 10]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 5]**

 **[Lien: 20]**

Well, for one, his level had gone up by one, and he apparently had five skill points now. He also had 20 Lien, although where that was was beyond him at this point.

"Jaune! Are you coming down or what!?" His mother called out from downstairs, prompting Jaune to completely panic in his rush to make it downstairs.

"Well, too late son. You know the rules, and you lost."

Jaune stumbled to a halt inside the kitchen to see the entire Arc family sitting and eating, Jaune's portion waiting for him. His father, Chrys Arc, who had spoken, sitting at the head of the massive table with a cheery smile on his face.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Last one down does the dishes," Jaune moaned, sitting in his seat as his sisters all smirked at him in varying levels of mirth.

Breakfast in the Arc household was always a loud affair, with ten people _without_ guests. On holidays it was a nightmare, but it wasn't always that bad. The four oldest sisters, Violet, Indigo, Lapis and Olive respectively, all worked as Huntresses, as did both Juniper and Chrys, and so most days the house was in the care of Jaune's twin Daisy, or Jaune himself, with the two working shifts whenever the elders weren't around to care for the younger two, Marigold and Azalea.

That was soon to change, however, with Jaune shipping off to Vale soon.

"So, Jaune, everything all set for that trip down to Vale?" Chrys asked, as he stabbed the chunk of pancake on his plate like it owed him an exorbitant amount of money.

"Yeah, I've just got to pack my stuff," Jaune replied, completely avoiding the topic of _why_ he was going to Vale.

"Well, you're old enough to make your own decisions, so I won't get in the way," Chrys said, dumping another stack of pancakes on his plate and performing a mafia-esq torture re-enactment as he drenched them in maple syrup.

"And if it doesn't work out, you can always come back home. We don't want you to think that we'd think you a failure," Juniper said as she peacefully cut away a bite-size piece of her pancake, lightly spreading some syrup on top of it.

"Thanks Mum," Jaune half-muttered.

Breakfast continued on without much pause, and sooner or later everyone had left the dining room, leaving Jaune to clean up the mess.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Housework: Dishes.**_ **]**

 **[Help out the family and wash all the dishes!]**

 **[Reward: 100 XP]**

Jaune sighed as he began his work, scrubbing away at the plates, cups and cutlery that were stacked high in the sink.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Dishwashing (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now improve on your dishwashing! Dishwashing speed increased by 5%._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

 **[Hint! Repeatedly using skills will both level them up, and contribute progress towards stats.]**

An hour, yes, an hour later, Jaune was done, the cacophonous dings that preceded an update of his dishwashing progress as staccato as ever.

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x8]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Dishwashing**_ **has reached level 9!]**

 **[Quest Completed!]**

 **[** _ **Housework: Dishes.**_ **]**

 **[Help out the family and wash all the dishes!]**

 **[Reward: 100 XP]**

 **[Hint! Say or Think 'Meters' to bring up a smaller stats window.]**

Jaune dried his hands on a hand-towel hanging over the oven handle, before taking a quick stretch. "Meters."

 **[Jaune Arc|Lv2]**

 **[XP: 100/2000]**

 **[HP: 100/100]**

 **[SP: 100/100]**

 **[MP: 100/100]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

Honestly, Jaune was pretty happy with himself, all things considered. _System Mind_ didn't seem to attempt to nullify his elation at a job well done, and a job well done it was, as he brought up his skills menu, looking at his _Dishwashing_ skill.

 **[** _ **Dishwashing (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now improve on your dishwashing! Dishwashing speed increased by 50%._ _ **Level 9; XP 43/100.**_ **]**

So, he was a better dishwasher at least. Maybe if his plans in Vale fell through he could get a job at a cafe somewhere.

He'd need a part-time job to cover the rent for the week or two before anyways.

Jaune quickly checked the clock on the wall, before blinking as another box appeared at its own whim.

 **[Hint! The top left of your peripheral has a clock!]**

It wasn't wrong, and the fact that both times were nearly eleven in the morning was quickly the more important thought that threatened to take over his mind.

He was supposed to be taking a flight from the shuttle bay at seven in the evening, which meant he had to pack and be ready by six at the latest, but that was seven hours away.

The most important thing he could do was train, and so training was something he decided to do.

There was no sense in applying for Beacon Academy without being willing to spend some spare time training, especially with the morning's revelations.

Jaune walked through the living room, which was thankfully empty, and took the blade off the mantlepiece, quickly walking to the side door of the admittedly large house and calling out. "I'm just going out for a walk, I'll be back later!"

There wasn't a response, but that was fine, it wasn't as if Jaune was actually looking for one as he stepped outside into the brisk air, pacing towards the nearby forest.

It took roughly twenty minutes before Jaune made it to his usual training spot, a babbling brook providing a pleasant ambiance alongside the chirping of birds, and occasional cicadas.

Jaune placed his hand on the grip of Crocea Mors, the ancient family blade, and drew it, giving it a halfhearted test swing.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: One-Handed Melee (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of wielding all one-handed melee weapons without difficulty! The higher the level of this skill, the more skilled you are with all one-handed melee weapons, and the more damage you are capable of dealing._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

 **[One-Handed Melee Proficiency Weapon added to list.]**

 **[Longsword.]**

Jaune felt the sword enter his mind as if it were a part of his own body, an additional limb made of steel and sharpness.

"Woah…" The teen said in awe, as he gave the sword a twirl, the blade glistening in the almost-midday sunlight.

He hooked his other arm around the sheath, bringing it up and deploying its shield form.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Shield (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of wielding all shields without difficulty! The higher level of this skill, the more skilled you are with all shields, and the more damage you are capable of dealing and blocking._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

 **[Shield Proficiency Weapon added to list.]**

 **[Heater Shield.]**

Jaune felt like new, as if his eyes had been opened to something he'd never quite felt before, only heard tale told from others.

This was what it felt like to be capable of using his weapons, of being able to fight.

Jaune felt at the top of the world at that moment. Nothing could tear him down from the pinnacle he'd achieved, there was absolutely nothing that would break his resolve, nothing that could-

Jaune felt the Beowolf's claw impact against his side before he even knew it was there, and as the teen was sent rolling backwards from the impact, it growled its deep growl, wary on its approach.

"Urgh!" Jaune cried out as he impacted against the base of a tree, the bark rough against his bare neck. Opening his eyes, Jaune watched the Beowulf slowly pace towards him, eyes glowing the menacing red that the Grimm were known for.

Unlike what the Grimm were known for, however, was the floating box that hovered above the Beowolf's head.

 **[Beowolf]**

 **[Grimm, Level 2]**

 **[Health: Uninjured]**

It was undoubtedly a health indicator, and Jaune quickly righted himself, grabbing his sword from where it lay in the dirt next to him.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Huntsman: First Steps (Part 1)**_ **]**

 **[Slay your first Grimm!]**

 **[Reward: 400 XP, 100 Lien, ?]**

That was the first time Jaune had seen question marks for a reward, but it wasn't as if he was overly familiar with Quests. He quickly snapped his attention back to his foe, the Beowolf growling menacingly at him.

Jaune shouted at the Grimm in response, charging in with his sword raised high above his head, his shield held in front of him.

The Beowolf responded by sprinting towards the charging teen, its eyes leaving red trails in the air as it snarled.

Jaune struck first, using his shield to smack into the Beowolf, before bringing his blade down to meet its outstretched arm.

The Beowolf took the hit from the shield, stunned for a moment mid swing as its arm was lopped off by a sharp slice from what was supposed to be easy prey.

Jaune, stepped back, eyeing the Grimm's health bar, noticing that it only had thirty HP left, and quickly stepped close again, slashing at the Grimm.

The Grimm was suicidal, that much was obvious, it couldn't possibly be any older than a month or so as it simply snarled and tried to bite the sword.

Naturally, biting a sword is a great way to get your jaw removed, so as the bottom half of the Beowolf's head hit the ground to join the rest of the body in fading away, Jaune slumped to the ground panting.

He'd killed his first Grimm! He'd actually done something worthwhile!

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 50XP!]**

 **[Quest Completed!]**

 **[** _ **Huntsman: First Steps (Part 1)**_ **]**

 **[Slay your first Grimm!]**

 **[Reward: 400 XP, 100 Lien, "Huntsman Initiate" Title]**

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Shield Bash (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can bash an opponent with your shield, stunning the opponent and dealing a small amount of damage. Certain opponents may be immune to stun. Costs 20 SP._ _ **Level 1; XP 25/100.**_ **]**

 **[Ding!]**

 **[Through constant exertion, you've gained 1 point of STR, and 1 point of END!]**

Jaune leaned back. "Stats."

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Initiate]**

 **[Level: 2]**

 **[XP: 550/2000]**

 **[HP: 47/110]**

 **[SP: 110/110]**

 **[MP: 100/100]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[STR: 11]**

 **[END: 11]**

 **[AGI: 10]**

 **[INT: 10]**

 **[WIS: 10]**

 **[CHA: 10]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 5]**

 **[Lien: 120]**

Honestly, he wasn't doing to bad, he thought. It wasn't like he had much experience with the 'System', as it kept calling itself, but he liked to think that he was doing pretty well so far.

The teen slumped back, lying down and staring at the sky in his peripheral vision, his stat box taking up the primary part of his vision.

He'd been injured, or he should've been. He'd been hit pretty hard, and he'd felt the claw enter his side. The adrenaline had pretty much wiped that feeling from his mind, and he couldn't feel it now, but even as he checked his side he found nothing but torn clothing and perfectly fine skin.

The claw should've disemboweled him, to be perfectly honest, but he supposed that the _System Body_ skill was doing what it said it did. His HP was down and his clothes were torn, so it definitely hit him.

"This is so weird it isn't even funny," Jaune said to himself, the sunlight filtering down between the leaves of the swaying trees that surrounded him.

Jaune watched the small stats box in his peripheral as his HP slowly regenerated, counting how many seconds it took.

It took roughly two seconds to regenerate 1 HP, or so his little periphery clock told him, so it wasn't too difficult to figure out the maths on how the regeneration worked, with 11 Endurance.

"It has to be Endurance divided by twenty, right?" Jaune asked himself as he stood up and grabbed Crocea Mors.

 **[Ding!]**

 **[For figuring out how regeneration works, you've gained 1 point of Intelligence!]**

 **[Unlocked: Detailed Stats Readout.]**

Jaune blinked, and quickly opened his stat menu.

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Initiate]**

 **[Level: 2]**

 **[XP: 550/2000]**

 **[HP: 56/110 (0.55/s)]**

 **[SP: 110/110 (2.2/s)]**

 **[MP: 110/110 (1/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[STR: 11]**

 **[END: 11]**

 **[AGI: 10]**

 **[INT: 11]**

 **[WIS: 10]**

 **[CHA: 10]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 5]**

 **[Lien: 120]**

Jaune took in the new details, before noticing something he'd been yet to notice. He pressed his finger against the title option, noting how it brought up a new window.

 **[Title]**

 **[Huntsman Initiate:** _As a Huntsman Initiate, you gain +10% XP from all Grimm kills._ _ **Next Rank: Huntsman Novice (0/5000 XP)**_ **]**

That was a pretty good title, whatever title meant, so Jaune was pretty happy.

The short amount of time he'd spent training was already proving to be the most beneficial training he'd done thus far, to this day, and he'd really only left the house half an hour ago.

Now, to get better at this whole 'System' thing.

* * *

 **[Tutorial Mode:** **Off]**

 **[Good luck. You're going to need it.]**

* * *

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Initiate]**

 **[Level: 2]**

 **[XP: 550/2000]**

 **[HP: 56/110 (0.55/s)]**

 **[SP: 110/110 (2.2/s)]**

 **[MP: 110/110 (1/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[STR: 11]**

 **[END: 11]**

 **[AGI: 10]**

 **[INT: 11]**

 **[WIS: 10]**

 **[CHA: 10]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 5]**

 **[Lien: 120]**

* * *

 **Well, that was fun, I hope. I actually really enjoyed writing this, and despite the fact that I wrote it a few days ago and only just edited it I like where it's at.**

 **I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter, expect the second chapter in a week, roughly.**

 **Please, do review, I'd love to hear what you have to say, and any ideas you may have I'll do my best to incorporate.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	2. Arc Airways

**I'm speechless. Seriously. 100 followers in a week, with a single chapter?! You guys are absolutely ridiculous, thank you so much. All of you who are tuning in, reading my work for the first time, thank you, I hope you enjoy, and for those of you who've seen my other stuff, you cheeky bastards. Cheers all of you!**

 **I hope this chapter lives up to the reputation I seriously wasn't expecting to get!**

* * *

The sounds of a peaceful forest in mid-afternoon were interrupted with a staccato rhythm, the solid thwacking sound of a sword thudding into the trunk of a tree.

Jaune wiped the sweat off his brow as he buried Crocea Mors into the dirt, leaning against the grip as he panted.

Two hours. He'd been at this for two whole hours, and he was already feeling more confident with the family sword. He'd even gotten plus 2 STR and plus 2 END from exercising!

"Skills," Jaune uttered aloud as he sheathed the blade.

The skill menu opened itself, and Jaune clicked the Proficiency tab, checking it.

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: One-Handed Melee (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of wielding all one-handed melee weapons without difficulty! The higher the level of this skill, the more skilled you are with all one-handed melee weapons, and the more damage you are capable of dealing._ _ **Level 2; XP 48/200.**_ **]**

 **[Longsword.]**

He was pretty happy with his progress thus far, and already the sword felt...

He couldn't really put how the sword felt into words. It felt almost like it belonged, in a sense.

Jaune was drawn from his musing as he felt a buzzing in his pocket. Reaching in, he grabbed his scroll and checked the caller ID, before answering it.

"Jaune, you need to get back here and pack young man!" His mother cried out through the Scroll's speakers, almost deafening the teen as he held it to his ear.

"Oh yeah, right! I'm on my way," Jaune replied quickly, as he hurriedly checked the clearing to make sure he hadn't left anything behind.

"You'd better be Jaune. I'll see you soon," Juniper said before she hung up, leaving a mildly panicked Jaune in the middle of the clearing.

Jaune noticed something glittering on the ground where he'd killed the Beowolf.

Heading home could wait a moment, he needed to check out what it was.

Walking over, Jaune bent down and looked at the offending item.

On the ground sat 5 Lien.

"Huh."

Jaune picked up the Lien, and pocketed it, before preparing himself to head back home.

He had a short walk ahead of him, but…

Maybe this would be a good opportunity to get a new skill.

Jaune assumed a runner's start, before firing off, sprinting towards home.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Sprint (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now sprint better than ever before! Sprinting costs 5SP/s, and you can sprint up to half-AGI m/s._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

Jaune sprinted along at five meters per second, not the fastest sprinting time ever, but certainly enough to cover the ground between his little training clearing and home in a much shorter time than walking would have.

As Jaune ran, he tried to figure out how long he could sprint for. If it costed 5 SP per second, and he had 130 SP, he could sprint for 26 seconds. Of course, he also had a regeneration rate of 2.6 SP per second, but from what he could tell it didn't regenerate whilst being used, so regardless of that it didn't make it too complicated to figure out how it worked.

 **[Ding!]**

 **[For figuring out more details on how stats work, you've gained 1 point of Intelligence!]**

That was nice. Jaune slowed down to a pant, having covered almost a tenth of the way in half a minute. A twenty minute walk shortened to five minutes of sprinting was pretty neat.

 **[Ding!]**

 **[Through constant exertion, you've gained 1 point of END and 1 point of AGI!]**

And there was the stat gains, they were nice too. Jaune was starting to believe that this semblance was the best thing to have ever happened to him.

Honestly, Jaune was getting faster and faster the more he sprinted, and soon enough the teen was standing at the front door to his house, sweat pouring down his head as he quickly regained his breath, _System Body_ kicking in to prevent exhaustion and to assist him in regaining any depleted energy as his stamina regenerated rapidly.

Jaune pushed his way through the front door.

"Ah, there you are. Get started packing, you've got a lot to do," Juniper said, gesturing to her only son to quickly head upstairs.

Jaune, not one to refuse either his mother or a good idea, quickly did as he was bid, climbing the stairs and heading to his room.

Once inside, he closed the door behind him and gazed around.

His stuff was mostly left where it was, which was to say it was scattered around the room like some kind of bomb had gone off.

It was at this moment that Jaune remembered he had Crocea Mors on his belt, and the teen freaked out, quickly tossing it onto his bed and shifting the covers over it.

Once that fiasco was sorted, Jaune began to collect whatever he thought he'd need for his extended stay in Vale. He reached down and picked up his spare hoodie, this one lacking his favourite logo, and went to place it in the suitcase his mother had plucked out of the attic and handed to him the day before.

 **[Hint! Say 'Inventory' to open your inventory!]**

"Inventory?" Jaune questioned aloud, as a new window opened in front of him.

A grid of boxes opened, next to a floating three-dimensional model of himself, a few boxes with what he was wearing in them hovering next to where they sat on his body.

"Huh," Jaune uttered, staring once again at the power his semblance provided.

Jaune reached out and placed the hoodie he was holding in the first slot, marvelling as it seemed to slide in, suddenly ceasing to exist in the very dimension it once did.

Jaune noticed another slot, this one full. With a quick tap, Jaune checked it.

120 Lien sat comfortably in the slot, obviously a slot specifically for Lien. Jaune reached into his pocket and added the 5 Lien he'd picked up from the forest floor and placed it in the slot, the 5 Lien note stacking with the other notes.

Jaune wasn't from a family that had much money to spare for luxurious goods. The thing about having eight children was that it cost just so damn much for upkeep, and Chrys and Juniper Arc tried their hardest to provide for them. Sure, they couldn't afford to buy expensive goods and expensive services, but Jaune, and the rest of his siblings, had never gone wanting, really.

Now Jaune had 125 Lien to his name after less than a day's work, and that was already a not-so-insignificant amount of money.

Jaune shook his head to clear it of transient thoughts, setting about loading his inventory with the things he'd need for Vale.

Of course, he'd still need to bring the empty suitcase if he didn't want to look insane. There was still the matter of figuring out how to explain his new semblance to his family, although the easier method was just to not mention it whatsoever. What they didn't know wouldn't hurt them, and it wasn't like it would be the first lie he'd told them lately.

Jaune finished packing, and by finished packing what he'd actually done was stuff a few pairs of his outfit, some snacks from his hidden cupboard, and Crocea Mors into his inventory before closing the empty suitcase and carrying it to the front door, where it sat waiting for him to retrieve it when he went to leave.

"Oh, you're done already Jaune?" His mother asked, and Jaune gave a nod.

"Yeah, I don't really need that much. You need me to help out with anything?" Jaune asked.

"Nothing that is too pressing, dear. You've got some time to spare, though, don't you?" Juniper replied.

"Yeah, what's up?" Jaune sat himself down behind the kitchen bench.

"I just wanted to check in with you and make sure that, despite your father's constant reassurances, this is really what you want to do," Juniper said, as she opened the oven and slid in an uncooked lamb roast.

Jaune didn't say anything as it was clear that his mother wasn't quite finished.

"I'm just not sure what it is that you are doing in Vale, dear. You said you were going to go to a school, but you haven't actually told me what you'll be doing at that school, and it has me a little concerned," Juniper said, closing the oven and facing her only son.

"Mostly just standard schooling stuff, but there'll be a few classes on self-defense. Nothing major," Jaune replied, lying through his teeth.

"And it isn't Beacon, the school both your father and I have forbidden you to go to due to your failing of the entrance exam to Signal?" Juniper asked, staring straight into Jaune's eyes.

Jaune blinked. "No, Mum, just a standard school. I haven't picked my units yet, that's all. I'm still a little indecisive, that's all."

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Deceitful Speech (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now deceive people far easier than before. The higher your CHA, the higher chance of success._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

Jaune blinked again, waiting for his mother to turn her back so he could dismiss the notification he'd received.

She stared at him for a second longer, before turning back to the counter to continue with her cooking.

"Well, as long as you stay safe, Jaune," Juniper said as Jaune scrambled to dismiss the notification that told him he was now better at lying.

"Don't worry Mum. I won't do anything dangerous, I promise."

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Deceitful Speech**_ **has reached level 2!]**

* * *

The shuttle bay was loud, the sounds of Bullhead engines warming themselves up almost deafening.

Jaune was worried. The last time he'd been on any kind of aircraft had been the family trip to Vale four years ago, and ten people getting incredibly motion sick had only made the trip all that much more awful.

He'd said goodbye to his family, the roast lamb his mother had cooked being as delicious as ever, before his father had driven him out to the shuttle bay and dropped him off.

The airship he had a ticket too was scheduled to leave in ten minutes, and Jaune quickly walked towards the luggage check-in, despite his actual luggage not being in the suitcase.

He finished the whole process of checking in for the flight, and proceeded to the departure lounge, which was a small wooden bench in a room overlooking the airfield. And by airfield Jaune really meant dirt field surrounded by a chain-link fence.

The departure lounge was mostly empty, aside from a few people in business suits lingering around, browsing incessantly on their scrolls.

"Now boarding; Flight 02, for Vale," The voice over the intercom spoke, as Jaune struggled to understand it. Why they couldn't use clearer microphones was beyond him, although whether or not it was the fault of the microphone or the speaker was something he'd never really considered.

He paced his way towards the boarding ramp, nervously scratching the back of his head as he mentally attempted to prepare himself for the few hours of stomach-based agony he was bound to endure on the flight. He found his way to his seat, promptly took said seat over with his rear, and waited.

And continued to wait.

And, surprisingly enough, waited some more.

The moment he thought there might be some kind of problem the airship lurched into the air, causing the sole son of the Arc family to freak out.

He wasn't feeling airsick.

This was either a miracle, a cruel trick, or something his semblance was causing.

Whilst he was willing to scratch out the first option, he opted not to do the same for the second despite the fact he was almost one-hundred percent sure it was the third. It was best not to tempt fate, he thought, and saying it wasn't a trick was one sure way to do so.

He was off, headed for Vale and anxiously awaiting what was in store for him. He laid back into his seat, enjoying it for the first time in his life, and considered his mental to-do list, so to speak.

Firstly, he had to find a place to stay. That wouldn't be too difficult, seeing as how Vale was a massive great big city that would most likely have a hotel of some description.

Secondly, he had to find out a way into Beacon Academy, despite his obvious lack of qualifications, or experience.

Although...

He considered the word experience, rolling it around on the inside of his mouth, balancing it on the tip of his tongue before swallowing it down.

It was entirely feasible that he could prove that he was combat-ready to whomever he had to prove it too, there was just the matter of being combat-ready he had to worry about.

He'd have to grind, to borrow some lexica from video game terminology, although now that he thought about it it was entirely fair that he did so, seeing as he was practically living the most realistic game out there.

Getting himself back onto topic, he considered his options. Grinding was possible, of course, but it was the method of grinding he really had to think about. Sure, he could whack a tree for a few days until he was somewhat capable of fighting with a sword, but it was less about how good he was with his sword and more about how desirable he was as a potential quote-unquote 'special case.'

If Beacon Academy were to take him in without any prior qualifications, he'd need to present something that no one else was capable of, or at the very least something that was beyond expectations.

He needed to impress them, to make them think he was a worthwhile investment, because if he wasn't they were gambling on an unknown quantity, and any good gambler knows those aren't good odds.

What he really needed was something he didn't already have, something a little more… unique.

 **[Ding!]**

 **[Through careful consideration, you've gained 1 point of WIS!]**

Well, that was nice. It boosted his mana regeneration…

Mana. That was it, it had to be. He'd never heard of it before, outside of games. The concept of magic was of fairytale, an idea that was far too ridiculous to actually be real, and yet, he had it.

Or at least, he thought he did.

He didn't actually have anything that used mana, so he couldn't exactly say for certain, but if it was there it had to have a reason, right?

Willing to run with that kind of logic, Jaune considered his gaming knowledge that, whilst limited, was certainly all dedicated to the beginning parts of games. He needed some kind of starter spell, but it was how he would go about making it that was the biggest hurdle.

Jaune relaxed into the chair, deciding to figure it all out when he touched down, opting to instead enjoy the first flight in his life he'd been able to enjoy.

There was just something about ten people needing to hurl into the sole bathroom onboard that really took away from the enjoyment of an airship ride.

* * *

The landing had been smooth, as had the trip over, and Jaune had enjoyed it immensely. He chose to retrieve the empty suitcase, although he quickly placed it inside his inventory when he was sure no one was looking.

Vale, even this late in the evening, was still a bubbling hive of activity, the nightlife apparently undeterred by both the influx of crime and ever-present threat of the Grimm, although Jaune had to suspect the reason why the nightlife was so prominent was both of these things being a constant.

He walked along the bustling thoroughfare, headed to one of the more well-off motel-esq establishments, hoping they had a spare room available.

He stepped across the threshold, asked the receptionist, and found that they did in fact have a room available, for only 70 Lien a night.

Sure, Jaune couldn't afford to stay longer than one night right now, but he hoped that would change soon.

Handing over 70 Lien and receiving a keycard marked '207', Jaune set off towards the staircase, headed to his room and deliberately avoiding the floating notification until he was out of sight.

 **[Key added!]**

 **[Golden Winds 207 Keycard]**

 **[Storing copy in Keys section of the inventory!]**

A copy, huh. That was an interesting revelation, and something Jaune could use to get into all kinds of trouble. Right now it didn't really pose much use, however, so he simply dismissed the notification and continued down the hallway to his room.

It wasn't a big room, Jaune noted as he opened the door. It wasn't extravagant, either, although it was both cheap and clean, and that was all Jaune really needed.

The bathroom was a little cramped but it served its purpose, so Jaune locked the door behind him and turned the shower on, hot water beginning to steam up as it touched the cold tiles.

Stripping down, Jaune stepped inside, marvelling at the feeling of hot water, seeing as he almost never got the first shower at home, so this was something he was most definitely not used to.

He soaped himself up and proceeded to let the hot water wash it off, with the assistance of a washcloth. After a couple minutes of allowing himself to bathe, he turned off the water and stepped out, grabbing a towel off the rack and drying himself off.

He looked at himself in the decreasingly foggy mirror, and noticed a few differences to how he had looked only the day prior.

His muscles were slightly more defined, his body slightly more toned. It was only slight, but that said he'd only received three points of Strength, so it wasn't as if he was expecting to turn into a massively buff monstrosity after a few days.

He decided against dressing manually, deciding to experiment with his inventory some more.

"Inventory," he said, bringing up the menu. He dragged an item of clothing to his 3D model that stood there, unashamed in its nakedness, and quickly placed it in the body slot.

A single millisecond passed and Jaune suddenly felt the comfortable fabric against his skin, the model covered in his baby-blue onesie.

"Haha!" Jaune laughed aloud, looking to anyone, were there to be anyone watching, like he was a madman.

Almost done with his inventory, Jaune dropped the clothes he had been wearing into it, noticing a small percentage on each item, noting the icon beside it, of which looked like a small splotch of dirt.

So, his inventory measured how dirty an item of clothing got, that was useful. His hoodie also had a second percentage next to it, this one indicated by what looked like a small bandage. Durability, or damage of some kind.

The hoodie was sitting at 22%, and Jaune realised he'd forgotten he'd been clawed by a Beowolf.

Such a rookie mistake, but it was mostly hidden from a cursory glance, so Jaune really hoped that no one had noticed. If they had, most would chalk it up to a fashion statement, but Jaune was worried someone in his family had paid actual attention to what he was wearing for a change.

There was nothing he could do about it now, however, so Jaune shook his head, dismissing the inventory.

He stepped out of the bathroom and practically slumped into the bed. He was tired, it was late, and all Jaune wanted to do now was sleep.

So sleep he did.

* * *

The sun streamed through the blinds, proceeding to glisten in Jaune's closed eyes, prompting him to roll over.

No such luck for the teen, as going to sleep would promptly be placed aside in favour of turning off the blaring alarm from his scroll.

Jaune opened his eyes, blinking as they cleared themselves from the blurry mess that was the first thing in the morning. His scroll bleeped incessantly from the nightstand where he'd left it, and he outstretched a hand to attempt to silence it.

It took three or four attempts, but he finally reached the offending device, pressing the button to stop the alarm.

He sat up in the bed, before noticing something in his peripheral.

A little icon of a shirt, with some writing beneath it. Jaune focused, and he could read it.

'-80% CHA', it read, and Jaune blanched.

Something was taking eighty percent of his Charisma, and there was really only one explanation.

The onesie.

Sure, it wasn't like a seventeen-year-old should be wearing a onesie to bed, or at least that was what society recommended, but what did society know?

They were too busy shunning Faunus to care about his onesie anyways.

Regardless, the debuff prompted Jaune to quickly shower and change, using his equipment slots to the best advantage he could as he quickly changed.

Stepping out of the bathroom, Jaune picked up his scroll and pocketed it, walking out the door and locking it behind him. He'd be back later on, or so he hoped, although missing the checkout time wouldn't be a problem seeing as there was nothing left in the room.

Out Jaune stepped into Vale, leaving the Golden Winds. The teen followed his first instinct, and headed to a cafe.

One sat only a few buildings down from the Golden Winds, and Jaune stepped inside, the refreshing smell of pancakes wafting over him. He took a seat and a waitress was quick to walk over.

"What can I get you?" She asked, and Jaune flashed her a smile.

"Just a double stack with some syrup, please," He replied, and the waitress quickly wrote it down and flicked him a smile in return.

"It'll be down real quick," She said, turning and heading towards the kitchen to place his order.

Jaune decided that this was as good a time as any to people watch, and he stared out the window, observing the comings and goings of mid-morning Vale.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Observe (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now observe people/things to discern information about them/it. The higher the level, the more information you are able to discern._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

Now that was a useful skill, although what information it entailed was entirely up in the air. Jaune watched as the waitress moved to a table not too far from him, and used _Observe_.

 **[Dahlia Rosemary]**

 **[Waitress, Level 1]**

So, not all that much information. He could discern names, job and level, which was useful, but it wasn't anything world-shattering.

His musing was broken as the waitress, Dahlia, placed a plate of pancakes in front of him.

"Thanks," Jaune said, smiling as she placed a jug of syrup next to the plate, along with some cutlery.

"No problem," Dahlia replied.

Jaune was about to get started when he paused, deciding to _Observe_ the pancakes.

 **[Pancakes, Double Stack]**

 **[Food, +50 HP, +25 SP]**

That was far more useful information, something Jaune was happy to see. He was also happy to start eating the pancakes with gusto, despite the fact that he was yet to feel hungry.

Sometimes it was about taste, rather than satiation.

Jaune finished rather quickly, before paying the bill, handing a 5 Lien note to Dahlia with a smile as he set out about the rest of his day.

 **[Ding!]**

 **[Through using your personal charm, you've gained 1 point of CHA!]**

So, a cherry on top of his wonderful breakfast. A great way to start the day.

He was headed for the outskirts of Vale, beyond the city limits, hoping to find some Grimm to kill. He knew they'd be low level and weak, seeing as how close they would be to the city, but he wasn't exactly ready to face hordes of Ursa Major.

Not yet, but maybe someday.

The walk was peaceful, as Jaune used _Observe_ on all the surrounding people, not finding anyone even remotely interesting as he walked.

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Observe**_ **has reached level 2!]**

It didn't take him too long to reach the edge of Vale, and once he did, he noted the wooden pole standing at the edge of a well-worn path.

He observed it, noting as multiple notifications appeared.

 **[Signpost]**

 **[Map updated!]**

 **[Vale, Outskirts added to Map]**

A map. Jaune should've figured he'd have a map.

"Map," Jaune said aloud, watching as a box appeared, a map showing. It was drawn as simple lines, with no colour or detail, and it was mostly blank except for where he had been in the past day or so.

It started back at his home village of Domremy, and showed the path the airship had taken over Sanus to Vale. Jaune tapped Vale, and watched as the map zoomed in, showing the map of the city of Vale. Much like the World Map that had opened originally, it was mostly empty aside from the path he'd taken, and the area he'd updated by observing.

A few symbols stood out on the map, and he noted that one of the symbols was a stylized skull, almost looking like a Beowolf's head. A quick consultation of the map's legend and Jaune determined that that was in fact the identifier for Grimm in the area, and so he headed that direction.

The teen walked towards the Forever Fall forest, ready to hunt some of humanity's worst enemies.

Or so he hoped, anyways.

* * *

 **[The System has updated!]**

 **[A Skill has changed!]**

 **[** _ **System Mind (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you now possess a mind immune to all negative effects, and you can now nullify potentially_ _extreme_ _negative emotions._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

* * *

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Initiate]**

 **[Level: 2]**

 **[XP: 550/2000]**

 **[HP: 140/140 (0.7/s)]**

 **[SP: 140/140 (2.8/s)]**

 **[MP: 120/120 (1.1/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[STR: 13]**

 **[END: 14]**

 **[AGI: 11]**

 **[INT: 12]**

 **[WIS: 11]**

 **[CHA: 11]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 5]**

 **[Lien: 50]**

* * *

 **Well, that was a fun little chapter. Although little doesn't really cover it, its nearly four-and-a-half thousand words. And the next one is even bigger. Ah, at least I'm ahead of schedule.**

 **Now, to talk about the reviews I've gotten, and to answer some questions slash put to rest some issues;**

 **merendinoemiliano: One day, I'll find a reason to write a self-fulfilling harem fic. Until then, however, the pairing for this fic will be somewhat undecided. I think it's important to note that I'm not very good at writing romance, especially as a sub-plot, but I may or may not give it a try. If I do, it probably won't be Arkos, because in my opinion Arkos is very one-note, but to each their own and such.**

 **Boudakip: Thanks. It was a little difficult trying to format all the notifications, but I think I've found a standard that flows well, and doesn't detract too much from the whole experience. At least there's no format guide at the beginning of each chapter! Thanks for the review!**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Almost every fic along the Jaune/Gamer lines I've read has been wizard/mage specced, and whilst that can be fun to write and all, Jaune isn't a wizard. The plan for this is to have a swordmage, and slowly but surely spec him towards being powerful in both range and melee. That reccomendation though, my gods. Not only is it dark as all hell, which I will admit is enjoyable to read, it's also depressing as fuck. Cheers for that, it was a really good read, and I'll have to leave a review for ICNeoOblivion, he knows how to write creepy, dark moral choices, that's for sure. Thanks for the review, you always seem to have something great to say!**

 **Guest: I get what you're saying, I really do, but the problem with removing INT and WIS is that not only are you removing key stats, you're kind of ruining the whole purpose of the fic. At that point, should I say that Ruby can't run that fast because we can't, or Blake can't shadow-clone because we can't? It isn't that Jaune is going to be super-smart, super-strong and impossible to beat, because there is a massive great big fuck-off spreadsheet with a shit-ton of math behind this fic, and I'm using all the damn experience I have to try and balance the whole System. I did, however, change up the way System Mind, or as most people know it Gamer's Mind, works, as evidenced above. Thanks for the review though, and I hope you stick with it despite, in your opinion, the shit start.**

 **SomberFlight: As I said to Guest, there is a big spreadsheet full of notes and mathematical equations as to balance the System, and to hopefully not have Jaune become either useless or overpowered. Also the metaphor "Patrick Star with Saitama's body" is by far the best way of putting a high STR, low INT build I've ever seen. All in all, thanks for the review and I hope it doesn't follow where your worries lie.**

 **overtoast: Cheers, mate. I figured the start needed to be a bit quirky to try and capture the sheer confusion, and despite the fact that the rest of the chapters I've written so far, including this one, don't have the same amount of quirkiness, I do feel like I'll sprinkle some in every now and then. Thanks for the review!**

 **Alvelvnor: An interesting point you make, and something I hadn't put too much consideration into as of yet. It is important to note that the biggest effect Luck would have would be on item drop rates and critical hits, alongside gambling. Jaune isn't much of a gambler, at least, not yet, but maybe one day that'll change. Right now though, well... Maybe Luck might become a bigger focus sooner rather than later.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	3. Bumbling In The Woods

**This is the last of the prewritten chapters, as of uploading this chapter 4 is partially written, so if there is anything you want/need to say, leave a review! I'll be answering some of the reviews down in the bottom AN every chapter.**

 **For those of you who haven't seen my answer to a review concerning Jaune's class, or class-equivalent, he is most likely going to be either a sword-mage or a tank-mage, the latter of which being the lesser realistic game-wise, and the more interesting to write. Why limit the boy, though.**

 **This chapter contains what is possibly my favourite fight I've ever written, despite its simplicity. It's the first fight this chapter.**

* * *

The Forever Fall was exactly what one would expect from what it was named, a forest in a state of permanent autumn. Red and orange leaves fell from mystical trees in a rain of plant matter, and the forest itself smelled almost sickly sweet, reddish sap dripping from trees aplenty.

Jaune, Crocea Mors drawn, paced his way through the forest, looking for Grimm.

So far he hadn't come across anything, but as he reached a clearing that changed.

Two snuffling Grimm, Boarbatusks, roamed the clearing, looking for something to kill.

Jaune quickly used _Observe_ on the two. A level 2, and a lower level 1. Two very easy Grimm, in the grand scheme of things.

They hadn't noticed Jaune yet, and so he turned his concentration inwards.

Mana, and by that extension Magic, were entirely plausible for his to wield. It was just a matter of him figuring out exactly how to go about doing so.

What would probably be the easiest way to use mana would be to simply create a chunk of it in his hand, and throw it. It couldn't be that difficult to manifest it, at least, and so that was what he tried, as he collapsed his shield and hung the now-sheath back on his belt.

He planted Crocea Mors in the dirt, close to hand, and raised his right hand, focusing inwards on bringing out the mana.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Bolt (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now manifest Mana into a bolt of energy, which can be flung at enemies at medium distance. Consumes 25 MP per casting, fires 1 bolt per casting._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

His hand glowed a bright blue, crackling almost silently as he held it.

Well, holding it wasn't really what he was doing, but the accurate terminology eluded him.

He rose from his crouched position, and carefully aimed the glowing bolt, and willed it to release.

It flew forwards and struck the first Boarbatusk in the flank, the pig-Grimm squealing in pain as it rounded on where the bolt had come from, the monstrous red eyes glowing with malignance as they located Jaune.

The lower level Boarbatusk, the one that hadn't been hit, lowered it's head and prepared to charge, but Jaune was already firing a second bolt of mana, the crackling blue launching out of his hand and smacking against the armoured forehead of the nearly charging monster.

Jaune quickly drew Crocea Mors from the ground and deployed his shield as he noticed that neither Grimm was dead, and prepared himself for the incoming attacks.

Barely a second passed until the first Boarbatusk thudded against his extended shield, nearly knocking the teen over from the force.

The second one was already rolling its way towards him, and he quickly stepped to the side, allowing the second to pass him by harmlessly as he focused on the first one, his sword stabbing towards its unprotected flank.

The blade bit into the dark flesh of the beast, and it squealed in agony as he thrust harder, pushing the blade deep enough to sever organs, were the Grimm to have any.

Jaune wasn't actually sure whether or not they had organs, but the thought was promptly whisked out of his head as the second Boarbatusk impacted against his back, sending him stumbling forwards.

It had been a lesser charge, not enough power to do any significant damage, but when Jaune checked his HP he noted it was around the eighty mark. Two more hits like that and he was dead, no matter what happened.

The first one was dead, thankfully, the corpse fading away into the air, but the second one was very much alive, and even angrier that its brethren had been slain.

Jaune rolled to the side to avoid the spiralling charge of the remaining Boarbatusk, and quickly sheathed his sword into the top of his shield, charging a third mana bolt in his hand.

It took less than a second, and he quickly unleashed it, the bolt arcing its way through the air and impacting against the rear of the still turning Boarbatusk, making it squeal.

Fully turned around now, the Boarbatusk shook it's head and charged, spiralling fast towards the teen.

Jaune charged a fourth bolt and quickly fired it, where it impacted right against the bare underside of the porcine Grimm.

It smelled awful, like molten flesh, and the Grimm squealed its last squeal as it died, tumbling mid-charge into a tree.

Jaune slumped to the ground and panted, one breath after another.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 33XP!]**

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Dodge (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now evade attacks with precision and skill. Consumes 10SP per dodge._ _ **Level 1; XP 17/100.**_ **]**

All that, for thirty-three XP. It was a start, and Jaune had a magical bolt of energy and a better dodge capability, but still. He felt he deserved a bit more than that.

It wasn't up to him, however, despite it being his semblance, so he simply shrugged and checked his meters.

 **[Jaune Arc|Lv2]**

 **[XP: 583/2000]**

 **[HP: 87/140 (0.7/s)]**

 **[SP: 140/140 (2.8/s)]**

 **[MP: 32/120 (1.1/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

It wasn't too bad, but he needed a rest before continuing to fight. At this rate he could only really fire another bolt before he was fully tapped mana-wise, and he could really only take another hit before he was in serious trouble.

Thankfully, the Boarbatusk had hit him with brute force, and his clothing seemed undamaged, or at least undamaged to the naked eye.

He'd take a couple minutes to rest, he figured, and from there he'd continue onwards deeper into the Forever Fall.

But first he had to check if the Boarbatusks had dropped anything, much like his first Beowolf had.

* * *

Magic was interesting. He'd created the _Mana Bolt_ through simple experimentation, and he was wondering if he could create other things much like the bolt.

Maybe he could try manipulating the bolt itself, he thought, as he conjured the bolt of mana.

Arcane energy crackled to life in his hand, and Jaune took the moment to really investigate it.

It was like an orb and yet not, almost shapeless and formless in his hand. He concentrated, trying to give it a form.

Focus gave way to result, as it turned out, as he tried to elongate the bolt of mysticism.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Arrow (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now manifest Mana into an arrow of energy, which can be flung at enemies at a distance. Consumes 40 MP per casting, fires 1 arrow per casting, pierces low-tier armor._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

Huh. Pierces low-tier armor?

Jaune looked over the arrow in his hand, the pointed bolt of mana pulsing slowly in his hand. He aimed it at a tree, and released it, the magical projectile leaving his hand with greater speed than the _Mana Bolt_ , blowing a small hole in the tree and continuing through, puncturing a smaller hole in the second tree until it crackled against the third tree, scarring the bark.

That… was pretty powerful, Jaune wasn't going to lie.

What it did against the Grimm was something Jaune was planning on finding out.

He didn't have to wait long to find a potential target, a snarling Beowolf, Level 2, sniffing him out and turning to face him.

Jaune created a Mana Arrow in his hand, quickly releasing it at the approaching lupine-esq Grimm.

Jaune had never been luckier, the arrow penetrating straight through the head of the Beowolf, blowing it open at the back and sending the already-dissolving corpse hurtling towards the ground at a considerable speed, the body skidding in the dirt until it reached his feet.

 **[Critical Hit!]**

Jaune mused over the new information presented. He could do critical damage, although whether it was based on headshots or just random chance was undecided.

Jaune considered it a little more, before blinking.

It hadn't popped up with a notification saying the encounter had ended. That meant…

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Sixth Sense (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you now possess a sixth sense around you, alerting you to potential threats or other things you would not normally notice._ _**Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

 **[Danger Sense.]**

Jaune sensed danger alright. He dodged forwards, rolling out of the way as a massive claw sliced its way through the air where he had been moments earlier.

Turning, Jaune observed the threat.

 **[Alpha Beowolf]**

 **[Grimm, Level 3]**

 **[Health: Uninjured]**

That wasn't bad, that was terrifying. Not only was it a level higher than he, it was an Alpha, and it was pissed.

"Good doggy?" Jaune offered, the Alpha Beowolf staring him down like a regular dog staring down a bone, or the sausage someone accidentally dropped at a barbeque.

Jaune was the proverbial sausage in this equation, although he was a sausage that could fight back.

The first _Mana Arrow_ impacted against the Beowolf's left shoulder, puncturing its way through but seemingly not affecting the Grimm, which howled and leapt forwards.

Jaune just barely managed to raise his shield in time to take the first claw, but even then the power behind it drove him back, heels digging into the dirt as he took the hit.

The second claw sliced into the shield, following the first, and Jaune almost buckled, both arms against the shield to prevent the potential of a single arm giving way to the gnashing death that awaited him.

A third swung its way in, but Jaune dodged to the side, rolling out of the way as the sharp claws gouged dirt, the Alpha turning its head to stare at its prey.

Jaune was supposed to be the Hunter in this situation, and yet as the Alpha stalked towards him he felt like anything but.

Another _Mana Arrow_ was possible, but he needed time to line up the shot, something he didn't have as the Grimm bore down upon him, swinging.

Jaune dodged once again, but the Grimm was ready for that, swinging a wide slash that clipped the edge of Jaune, sending him flying into a nearby tree.

Ouch. He was down to just thirty HP, and that was bad. One more hit and he was a goner.

The Alpha Beowolf approached even still, as Jaune clambered to his feet, a _Mana Arrow_ in hand.

It howled, lifting its head to the sky and unleashing the howl. Whether it was calling more Grimm, or simply announcing its victory was beyond Jaune, but he knew an opportunity was presenting itself.

He lined up the shot, and fired, the _Mana Arrow_ lancing out of his hand and promptly putting a hole in the head of the Alpha Beowolf, a dinging noise indicating he'd hit another critical.

Jaune wasn't done yet, however, as he sprinted in close and stabbed the chest of the monster with Crocea Mors, the blade piercing matted fur and emerging the otherside in a spray of black viscosity.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 596XP!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x2]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Weapon Proficiency: One-Handed Melee**_ **has reached level 3!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x2]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Shield**_ **has reached level 3!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x2]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Dodge**_ **has reached level 3!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Mana Arrow**_ **has reached level 2!]**

 **[Ding!]**

 **[Through facing difficult challenges, you've gained 2 points of STR, 2 points of END, 1 point of AGI, 1 point of INT and 1 point of WIS!]**

That was a lot of notifications.

Jaune, once again, slumped to the ground, this time breathing heavily.

He was close to death, and yet felt fine. He wasn't panicking, wasn't bleeding heavily, he didn't even feel nauseous. All benefits of The System, he guessed.

"Meters," Jaune said, surprised at his steady voice.

 **[Jaune Arc|Lv2]**

 **[XP: 1179/2000]**

 **[HP: 38/160 (0.8/s)]**

 **[SP: 180/180 (3.2/s)]**

 **[MP: 35/130 (1.2/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

Well, he was that much closer to leveling up, which was nice. All he had to do was never get in a situation like that ever again and he'd be fine.

Now, Jaune had something more important to consider.

Loot.

He checked the area, noting the already almost gone Alpha Beowolf corpse had left a few things behind. Picking up the 10 Lien that dropped from the Beowolf he'd killed earlier, he walked over the the Alpha.

50 Lien, that was a very nice bolster to his monetary situation, and…

Jaune wasn't really sure what it was until he picked it up and used _Observe_ on it.

 **[Alpha Beowolf Fang]**

 **[The fang of an Alpha Beowolf, this rare crafting component sells well, and can also be used as a makeshift weapon in emergencies.]**

Now that was a good find. Jaune opened his inventory and stored it.

And to think, the day had only just begun.

* * *

Trekking through the Forever Fall was a surprisingly serene experience, despite the ever-present threat of the Grimm that lingered.

Jaune paced forwards, now that his meters were back to full, and kept his eyes wary, scanning the surroundings for any potential threats.

He didn't see anything, but another clearing presented itself, and Jaune decided that this was as good a time as any to take a quick break, and try and figure out some new skills.

Jaune sat for a moment, leaning his back against a trunk, and thought.

 _Mana Bolt_ was powerful, and _Mana Arrow_ was even more so, but was there something even better he could make?

Jaune created a _Mana Bolt_ in his hand, staring at it once more.

Logically, if he considered it, a bolt was weaker than an arrow, but what was stronger than an arrow?

The answer came to him in a split-second, the teen surprised he didn't think of it sooner.

A bullet.

Such a simple concept had managed to evade his mind for this long, although considering his current physical armament it wasn't that much of a surprise.

Jaune manipulated the arcane energy in his palm, making it smaller and round, until a small sphere sat on the tip of both his index and middle fingers.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Bullet (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now manifest Mana into a small bullet, which can be fired at enemies at a long distance. Consumes 50 MP per casting, fires 1 bullet per casting, pierces medium-tier armor and multiple soft targets. Deals higher damage than Mana Arrow, but creates a smaller wound._ _**Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

Jaune stared at the sphere, as it hovered at the tips of his fingers. It wasn't quite what he thought it could be, however.

A bullet didn't just fly through the air straight, did it?

Jaune knew bullets spun, that was the point of rifling, wasn't it? He willed the _Mana Bullet_ at his fingertips to spin, and he watched as it slowly but surely began to build up momentum.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Spinning Mana Bullet (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now manifest Mana into a small bullet spinning with kinetic energy, which can be fired at enemies at a long distance. Consumes 65 MP per casting, fires 1 spinning bullet per casting, pierces medium-tier armor and multiple soft targets. Deals higher damage than Mana Bullet._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

There we go, thought the Arc teen. That was powerful, and expensive on the Mana consumption. His leading shot would have to be this, although now that he thought about it, was it possible to spin his _Mana Arrow_?

First, Jaune had to figure out what to do with the spinning orb of destruction that sat on the edge of his fingers. He aimed as if he were a child playing with finger guns, index and middle fingers outstretched, and willed it to release, the bolt shooting off and puncturing a hole through the tree opposite him on the other side of the clearing, making its way through several more trees behind that.

Woah.

Now, Jaune created a _Mana Arrow_ in his hand, and much the same as the _Mana Bullet_ willed it to spin.

This time, the larger projectile created a bigger vortex as the air around it was drawn in and flung out as it rotated rapidly.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Spinning Mana Arrow (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System,you can now manifest Mana into a spinning arrow of arcane energy, which can be flung at enemies at a distance. Consumes 55 MP per casting, fires 1 spinning arrow per casting, pierces low-tier armor and inflicts bleed[?]. Deals more damage than Mana Arrow, but less than Spinning Mana Bullet._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

Jaune clicked the question mark button next to 'bleed', interested as to what it entailed.

 **[Bleed]**

 **[Bleed is a status effect that can be inflicted, causing damage over time. Damage is dependent on the severity of the Bleed and where the wound which inflicted Bleed is located.]**

That sounded really useful, Jaune thought, as he considered the options he had available to him.

In a standard one-on-one fight against a Grimm, Jaune was best off leading with a _Spinning Mana Bullet_ followed by a _Spinning Mana Arrow_ , and whilst it left him with negligible Mana for the rest of the encounter it would do significant damage to his foe to begin with, causing the Grimm to be slower and weaker, along with the Bleed status effect. Then, he could go in with Crocea Mors and finish the Grimm off, which conveniently was a great way to earn Skill XP for all his skills. Maybe he could add in a _Shield Bash_ occasionally, which really couldn't hurt.

 **[Ding!]**

 **[For considering an effective combat strategy, you've gained 1 point of INT and 1 point of WIS!]**

Jaune released the _Spinning Mana Arrow_ lazily, the Mana projectile spinning off into the forest and making its way through a tree and into another, a remarkably bigger chunk taken out of the tree than what _Spinning Mana Bullet_ had done.

Jaune clambered to his feet once the Mana he'd spent had regenerated, looking around the clearing.

It was still, unsurprisingly, empty, and so the teen decided to continue onwards, deeper once more into the Forever Fall.

He didn't get far before he heard the telltale signs of Grimm, but it was his _Sixth Sense_ pinging that picked up something else.

Putting what he felt into words was difficult, and he didn't really have time to think about what he would've said regardless as he tore through the forest towards the Grimm.

 _Sixth Sense_ continued to flare, and he homed in on the source of the proverbial signal, before bursting out of a bush into what could effectively be called a warzone.

Dead Grimm littered the ground, in various states of fading away, but there were alive Grimm too, two specifically.

Three heads turned to face the Arc teen who had burst so unceremoniously from the red and orange flora, and Jaune noted that whilst two of them were Grimm, one was decidedly not.

In fact, it was decidedly human, and even more so fatigued.

Black hair flowed freely over bare shoulders as the white and black themed girl stared at him with amber eyes, her black blade buried deep into the midsection of the first hulking Grimm that stood in front of her, practically pinning her to the tree she'd backed up against.

The Ursa, for that was what the Grimm were, quickly capitalised on her lack of attention, a massive paw smacking her towards Jaune, where she skidded to a halt, a light purple glow shattering around her body as she came to a halt.

That was bad.

Jaune observed the two Grimm, preparing himself for a fight.

 **[Ursa Minor]**

 **[Grimm, Level 2]**

 **[Health: Lightly Wounded]**

 **[Ursa Minor]**

 **[Grimm, Level 2]**

 **[Health: Moderately Wounded]**

Well, at least they were already hurt somewhat.

Jaune quickly stepped in front of the girl, shield raised.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Bodyguard; Forever Fall.**_ **]**

 **[Protect the mysterious girl, who got knocked unconscious due to your bumbling!]**

 **[Reward: 1000 XP, 100 Lien]**

Bumbling? Jaune took a little offense to that, but in truth that had pretty much been what he was doing.

Now was not the time to reminisce, however, as he planted Crocea Mors into the ground, his now empty hand aiming at the closer of the two Ursa, a _Spinning Mana Bullet_ spiralling off the tip of his fingers and impacting against the neck of the ursine Grimm.

It roared as the arcane projectile carved a chunk of black matted flesh loose, but Jaune didn't have time to focus as the second Ursa was already bearing down on him. Heh, bearing-

The pun cost Jaune, the Grimm smacking his shield hard enough to loose it from his grip, the plate of metal spinning off into the distance and burying itself into a nearby tree with enough force to gouge deep into the wood, effectively keeping it pinned.

It was significantly unfortunate that he'd lost his only means of defense, and the Ursa was swinging a second time.

Jaune rolled just to the side, barely avoiding the strike. He needed to do something now, as the second Ursa was approaching, a growl escaping its mouth.

Jaune charged forwards, Crocea Mors in hand, and swung at the closest Ursa, the creature simply taking the blow on its beefy arm, before attempting to smack Jaune back.

A _Spinning Mana Bullet_ met its face, burrowing through the thick bone plating and exiting the back of its skull, the Ursa crumpling over the top of Jaune as the second one roared in anger.

Jaune had taken out one threat, but there was still one more, and a quick glance at his meters indicated he only had twenty-three Mana available.

Maybe it was time to stop relying on magic.

Jaune rolled out of the way of the falling bear Grimm, to the side of the second one. The teen kept a wary eye on the girl, who was still unconscious but thankfully out of the way, and he ran towards where his shield was lodged.

A quick _Jump_ had him grasp the edge and gravity assisted him in yanking it out of the tree, quickly placing it back on his arm as the Ursa smacked him into another tree.

It had hurt, and Jaune felt the pain quickly nullified by _System Body_ , whatever potential wound simply disappearing as soon as it appeared, but he had still felt it.

Shakily, he rose, the Ursa lumbering towards him for another powerful strike. He couldn't take another hit like that, a recurring theme for the day, and so quickly raised his shield.

The paw hammered down on him, driving him almost to his knees from the force. Jaune quickly snapped back into action, smacking the Ursa with his shield, using _Shield Bash_.

Ineffective, apparently, as the Ursa recovered quickly, managing to block the slash that Jaune had sent its way.

Jaune rolled out of the way as it struck again, the behemoth's paw smacking the dirt with a thunderous clap, sending a spray of dirt into the air.

Another check of his meters revealed him to be at forty Mana, but it wasn't enough to do anything significant with. He'd just have to keep avoiding the Ursa until he could.

The Ursa wasn't willing to keep doing the dance with Jaune however, both paws swinging in to squash Jaune between them.

Jaune did the only thing he could, and stuck out his sword, the handle braced against the back of his shield.

That was possibly the smartest decision Jaune had made in a long time as the Ursa used its own force to pierce its paw, Crocea Mors burrowing deep into the tender flesh and leaving Jaune mostly unharmed.

Unfortunately, as the Ursa roared and pulled its paws away, Jaune lost his grip on Crocea Mors, the blade still stuck in the Ursa.

Jaune rolled backwards, just out of reach of the now very-pissed bear-monster, and hoped for the best.

A _Mana Bullet_ left Jaune's hand and punctured the Ursa's head, the dinging of a critical hit accompanying the dying whines of the Grimm as it finally collapsed, falling face first into the dirt and lying there unmoving, flesh vaporizing.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 66 XP!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Observe**_ **has reached level 3!]**

Jaune quickly retrieved Crocea Mors, before just as quickly making his way over to the girl, still collapsed on the ground.

"Observe."

 **[Blake Belladonna]**

 **[-, Level 13]**

 **[Condition: Aura Depletion, No Serious Injury]**

Okay, that was good. She was exhausted and out of Aura, not bleeding internally or anything that could be disastrous. It was beneficial that _Observe_ was capable of reading that.

Jaune made sure all his gear was sheathed, and quickly grabbed the 40 Lien that the two Ursa had dropped, before lifting the girl, Blake, carrying her out of the Forever Fall forest, and back to Vale.

It was a long walk, and even longer with her in his arms, but he had to do it, so do it he would.

* * *

The slight halting of breath was the only telltale sign she gave off as she woke, keeping her eyes as closed and natural as possible.

She listened intently, focusing her hearing, trying to discern whether or not she was alone.

From the feel of material on her skin, she wasn't in the Forever Fall anymore. She was somewhere else, and she wasn't sure if that was more or less concerning.

It smelled clean, thankfully, and the material she could feel was soft, like a down blanket.

She opened one eye ever so slightly, amber iris scanning the room.

A room it was indeed, and she was laid out on a bed, her body aching still. The window, and subsequent blinds, were closed, and the doors were also closed.

An armchair sat it the corner, and upon it a teen in a hoodie and jeans, eyes slightly glazed over as he stared at the air in front of him, seemingly reading the very air itself.

She recognized his face as the last one she'd seen, the boy who'd stumbled upon her conflict with the Ursa, the one who'd watched as she got batted aside like an afterthought by a Grimm that weight ten times her own body.

It was apparent that he'd killed the Ursa and rescued her, although she wasn't exactly happy about that arrangement.

Maybe she could pretend to be asleep until he fell asleep, and sneak out of the room?

It would certainly be easier than explaining anything to the boy, even if he did _technically_ save her life.

The choice was taken out of her hands when he looked directly at her.

"Ah, you're awake! That's good. I was worried you were more hurt than I'd thought."

She stared at him, both eyes open now, trying to converse how unhappy she was with the situation without having to say anything.

It seemed the boy didn't care, however, completely missing the look she was giving him and continuing to speak.

"My name's Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls of the tongue. Ladies love it!" The boy said, once again missing the deadpan stare. "What's yours?"

Now she had to speak, and as such she frowned slightly. "Blake Belladonna."

"Well Blake, it's nice to meet you, even if it is under worse conditions than either of us would've preferred," Jaune said, before shaking his head as if to dismiss the fact that she was still staring at him.

"So, what were you doing in the Forever Fall as tired as you were?" Jaune asked, a look of concern flashing across his face.

Unneeded concern, in Blake's opinion, but the boy, Jaune, seemed harmless enough. Not harmless enough to trust with the past, of course, but enough to trust with some part of her future.

"I was on my way to Vale, to apply to Beacon," Blake said, attempting to sit up.

The wince of discomfort had Jaune rushing to her side, much to her dismay. "Easy, don't take it so fast. You got hit pretty hard, and it broke your Aura. You're suffering from Aura exhaustion still, so just relax. You aren't in any state to go anywhere anyways."

She frowned, and Jaune quickly hurried to placate her. "I don't mean that you can't leave, I'm not holding you prisoner or anything, its just that I've already paid for the room and you do need the rest. Just relax, sleep, recuperate. You can leave in the morning regardless, and you'll feel better for it."

She relented, ceasing her attempts to get up, but didn't remove her glare.

"Besides, if you're headed to Beacon I can join you, I'm actually headed there myself to apply," Jaune said with a smile, scratching the back of his head.

Blake reacted to that with an emotionless "hmph," Jaune taking that as both an agreement and as a dismissal for the night, and as such he stepped towards the door that led to the hallway, before turning.

"The room is yours, by the way. I figured I should let you know. I'm in 207 if you need me," Jaune said, and with that he left, leaving Blake alone in the room.

The moment the door closed Blake let out a groan of pain, re-adjusting herself in the bed and trying to sleep.

Jaune hadn't been wrong. She was exhausted.

* * *

The door to 205 clicked shut, and Jaune entered 207, closing his door behind him and entering the bathroom, turning on the shower and unequipping his clothing, stepping underneath the hot water.

Now was the time to react to the notifications he'd received, the boxes having been floating in his periphery since before Blake had woken up. He'd been preoccupied, of course, with the unconscious girl, but now he had time to himself.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Bodyguard; Forever Fall.**_ **]**

 **[Protect the mysterious girl, who got knocked unconscious due to your bumbling!]**

 **[Reward: 1000 XP, 100 Lien]**

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 3!]**

 **[+5 Skill Points!]**

 **[Ding!]**

 **[Due to constant physical exertion, you've gained 1 point of STR and 1 point of END!]**

He was Level 3 now, already increasing, and he had another 5 skill points available. And to think, he hadn't even used his first five. He'd honestly forgotten about them, overwhelmed as he was with the massive amount of information the System had presented him, but now he could look into them, and see what all the proverbial fuss was about.

 **[Skill Points!]**

 **[Skill Points are single use points that can be consumed to provide a single point towards any stat. Each level earns you 5 Skill Points!]**

Useful things, then. Although…

"Stats," Jaune said over the sound of running water.

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Initiate]**

 **[Level: 3]**

 **[XP: 245/3000]**

 **[HP: 170/170 (0.85/s)]**

 **[SP: 170/170 (3.4/s)]**

 **[MP: 140/140 (1.3/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[STR: 16]**

 **[END: 17]**

 **[AGI: 12]**

 **[INT: 14]**

 **[WIS: 13]**

 **[CHA: 11]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 10]**

 **[Lien: 185]**

It was harder to level up to level 4. Meaning it was harder to get more skill points. Should he save them, like some kind of rainy day fund for boosted stats? Or should he spend them now?

Questions, questions. He didn't really have a definite answer, so for now he would put it off, and give it some thought at another time. Most probably the next time he leveled up, if he were to guess.

Surprisingly, the notifications ended just as quickly as they had appeared, and whilst Jaune wasn't complaining, it wasn't anything to take an overly long shower for, so he cut the water supply once he was finished with the usual shower business, stepping out and towelling himself off, before attacking the bed with an effortless belly-flop, smacking against the mattress with a content groan of satisfied exhaustion.

Jaune couldn't complain about the day, that was for certain. He'd killed a bunch of Grimm, leveled up, completed a quest and saved a life.

All in a day's work for Jaune Arc, the teen with the semblance of the System.

* * *

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Initiate]**

 **[Level: 3]**

 **[XP: 245/3000]**

 **[HP: 170/170 (0.85/s)]**

 **[SP: 170/170 (3.4/s)]**

 **[MP: 140/140 (1.3/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[STR: 16]**

 **[END: 17]**

 **[AGI: 12]**

 **[INT: 14]**

 **[WIS: 13]**

 **[CHA: 11]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 10]**

 **[Lien: 185]**

* * *

 **Well, that was a lot of stuff happening in one chapter. Jaune learns magic, fights Grimm and rescues a damsel in distress, who was put in distress by his lack of subtlety. Well done Jaune.**

 **Now, onto the reviews!**

 **merendinoemiliano: There is a good reason why Jaune doesn't have his Aura yet, and that will come up most probably during the Initiation. I have to follow some semblance of canon, at least. Giving MP to others though... That gives me an idea.**

 **belamy20: Good point, and advice I'm probably going to take. There isn't much point to focusing on romance, seeing as that isn't what the story is about. I will include it, however, as a lot of you have pointed out.**

 **Alvelvnor: Ah, dungeons. Still something I haven't put too much thought into, but there are a few ways to go about doing it. Do I go about the original Gamer way, with Illusion Barriers, do I try Coeur's Forged Destiny style and have dungeons that appear and disappear over time, do I try something like The Name Of The Game, which is almost like a combination of both?** **Honestly, I don't know how they'll work yet, but if there are people, like you, who want me to include Bosses, Enemies, Items and Skill Books from other universes, I'll probably do it. Who knows, maybe we'll get all sorts of stuff to turn Jaune into the most varied badass out there. As a side note, would you believe I've never played a single Final Fantasy game? Or Kingdom Hearts? The list of games I've missed is long and wide.**

 **Also pairing Adam and Jaune would be the funniest thing to write, especially after the events of the latter part of this chapter. What would their ship name be?**

 **Guest: Will make him a tank thx.**

 **kaxipoptos: Skill Points are going to come up pretty soon, once Jaune figures out how he wants to go about progressing through the System. I agree with you, there isn't much point hoarding them, but he's going to have to be smart about how he uses them, so just dumping them all into a stat is not how he'll go about it, if he's as smart as his stats say his is.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	4. Mechanical Menaces

**Apologies for the late chapter, and whilst I won't make any promises there may be another chapter at the usual time this week, unless I don't get that written in time, in which we'll just consider this this weeks chapter and say I missed last weeks. Enjoy!**

* * *

The sun broke its way out of the horizon, the prison holding it simply ceasing to resist as it crested, bringing with it the morning.

Jaune woke, and was busying himself with getting ready.

Today was Beacon's application day, and without any kind of documents Jaune was going to have to prove that he was a capable fighter who'd trained enough to be at the same level as the other applicants.

He wasn't as nervous as he'd expected to be, were he to be honest. Instead, he felt more excited than anything else, and in his head he was running through all the things he could do to prove that he was in fact capable of being a Beacon student.

Jaune gave the room a once over another time, making sure he'd left nothing behind, before leaving, shutting the door behind him.

A sigh caught his attention as he turned to face the black-haired figure with the purple bow trying to not make eye-contact, the girl in the process of closing her door.

"Hey Blake!" Jaune said, a grin on his face.

Blake was far more subdued in her response, however. "Hello."

"So, you feeling better?" Jaune asked.

Blake nodded, before resolving herself. "Thank you, for helping me yesterday," she said, quietly.

"Hey, it was no problem. You needed help, so I helped out. Nothing more to it," Jaune said with a smile as he began following the rapid pace the raven-haired girl was setting. "So, are you headed to apply for Beacon?"

Blake didn't reply verbally, instead a single nod of her head that Jaune almost missed.

"Well, I'll tag along with you, I'm going to apply too!" Jaune exclaimed.

"I remember," Blake replied dryly, doing her best to not appear to have any kind of emotions.

"So, how do we actually get to Beacon?" Jaune asked.

Blake stopped, a dead-stare leveling at the blond boy. "You don't know?"

"I have no idea," Jaune replied succinctly.

Blake sighed. It was going to be a long morning.

* * *

It wasn't that Jaune didn't know where Beacon was. The Hunter academy was pretty hard to miss from Vale, were a gaze to stray east.

Even now, Beacon's spires towered over the distance, as Blake and Jaune made their way towards the shuttle dock that would take them from Vale to Beacon.

The sun glistened over the top of the distant peaks of the academy, and Jaune eyed his surroundings as he followed Blake, the amber-eyed girl's vision constantly flickering from one person to another, rather obviously paranoid.

"Hey Blake, something wrong?" Jaune asked, quickly pacing to catch up with her.

"Nothing. I'm fine," Blake replied with a fair bit of heat, and Jaune quickly recoiled his offer of talking about whatever was bothering her before he even tried.

"You don't sound fine, Blake," Jaune sai, a concerned look on his face.

The amber glare that was leveled his way made him cower. "We are not friends. You helped me, thank you for that, but that doesn't make us anything along the lines of anything but strangers."

Jaune waited a beat, before replying. "My mother says strangers are just friends you haven't met yet."

Blake stared at him nonplussed.

Jaune didn't really have anything with which to follow that statement up, so he simply stayed silent, something Blake was internally very pleased with.

The two remained silent as they reached the shuttle dock, and remained silent as the Bullhead took them up to Beacon, along with a few other people.

They even remained silent as they landed, departed and listened as a person spoke, one who looked important enough to listen to.

"Those of you here are here to prove your academic prowess to attend Beacon without prior documentation. Follow me."

Jaune did so, as did Blake, and the rest of the crowd.

"This is one of Beacon's training arenas. Here you will be fighting against training robots, provided by the Atlesian Military as a part of their self-learning combat programming. You will face off against waves of training robots, with each wave getting progressively more difficult the further along you get. The higher wave you reach, the more likely you are to be considered for enrollment. Please write down your full names, and you will be drawn and called once it is your turn to enter the ring. Once you have written down your name, please take a seat in the spectator stands."

Jaune wrote down his name, and walked over to the spectator seating, taking one such seat and turning to see Blake mysteriously absent.

He looked around, but she was already on the other side of the field, obviously trying to get away from him.

He wasn't so dense as to not realise, but he let it be. The girl was probably nervous, seeing as her fight with the Ursa in the Forever Fall hadn't gone so well.

Once everyone was seated, the first name was called, and it wasn't Jaune, nor was it Blake, but Jaune paid attention all the same, interested to see what kind of robots it was he would be fighting, whenever his turn came around.

The figure down in the arena, a guy wearing simple leather armor and wielding a rifle with a bayonet attached, waited patiently.

He didn't have to wait long as the walls beneath the spectating ring opened up, and he was surrounded by four robots.

"Observe," Jaune muttered under his breath, staring at one such robot.

 **[Atlesian Knight-130 (AK-130)]**

 **[Robot, Level 1]**

 **[Health: Undamaged]**

Level 1, huh. He could fight level ones, he'd been doing that for a few days now. Although starting with four was challenging.

"Begin!" The voice called, and the boy shot forward, embedding the blade of his bayonet into the dark grey chest of the robot, the eerie glowing red lights that emitted from it shutting off as the boy squeezed the trigger, his rifle bucking with the recoil and sending him into a spin, where he promptly decapitated the second.

The third and fourth robots were already in action, however, and as the boy tried to strike the third he was struck by a burst of gunfire from the fourth, his Aura flickering as he was struck.

The boy wasn't done, however, as he leveled his rifle and pulled the trigger, rounds spitting out the barrel and impacting against the third robot, dust rounds punching through grey steel plating and disabling the robot, red lights flickering as it shut down.

The fourth robot leapt forwards with blades protruding from its arms, slashing down at the unprotected boy's flank.

Aura flickered, crackled and the boy stumbled backwards, the robot reaching for another strike before its lights simply ceased, the robot folding over and sheathing its weapons.

"End of fight! Your aura has reached the red, and you have defeated three of the training robots. Next person, get ready!"

Jaune watched as the robot reactivated itself, dragging the disabled corpses of its brethren back into where they'd come from.

The next name was called.

There were plenty more people left to test, and as Jaune looked around, it looked like it would be a while.

He just hoped he'd be able to pass.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Huntsman: First Steps (Part 2).**_ **]**

 **[Successfully complete the Beacon Acceptance Exam.]**

 **[Reward: Accepted into Beacon Academy, 800 XP]**

"Jaune Arc!" The voice called out, and Jaune snapped too, looking around as his mind reconnected with his body.

Jaune quickly stepped over to the stairs, climbing down with a sense of both excitement and trepidation.

Once inside the arena he unsheathed Crocea Mors, the blade glinting in the artificial light as he deployed the shield, the audible kerchunk echoing across the mostly empty stands.

Four robots walked out, stepping through the doors and into the arena. Jaune swapped his gaze from one to the other.

 **[You have entered a training area! Kills whilst inside training areas will not net you any XP towards next level, but will still net you XP for skills.]**

Jaune 'huh'-ed in surprise, but quickly refocused his attention.

"Begin!" The voice called, and Jaune moved.

Shield up, Jaune charged the first robot, bashing it with the solid plate, before a quick slash entered at the shoulder and cleaved down into the chest.

He wrenched the blade out as he rotated, the three AK-130s approaching from what was now his front.

It wasn't time yet to reveal any of his tricks, so he had to rely on solid skill, and by solid skill what Jaune meant was the skill the System had provided him with, so as the robots both peppered his shield with bullets and charged forwards blades deployed, he reacted in the way that felt most natural.

From behind his shield Jaune felt the impact of the robot's blades, and he quickly flickered his blade out, stabbing the AK-130 in the midsection and disabling it.

These things were startlingly easy to destroy, and as Jaune felt the peppering of bullets impacting against his shield he swung, sword shining as it sliced through air and metal, destroying the third robot with ease.

The fourth switched from the constant barrage to sharp blades, and as it pushed in Jaune met it with his shield, pushing it back and stabbing, catching it in the side and causing chunks of metal to hit the ground.

The robot took another step forward. Another step followed the first, and Jaune buried Crocea Mors into its head, the robot faltering and falling.

"Wave one complete!" The voice called, and Jaune panted, breath coming fast and short.

Adrenaline was one hell of a drug after all.

"Wave two, begin!" The voice called once more, and Jaune shrugged off what fatigue he felt, readying himself once more.

* * *

"Wave five, begin!"

Exhaustion was hitting Jaune like a stolen freight train, and he was barely able to block the heavy impact of two AK-130s, sparks flying as blades ground against shield.

Jaune was yet to take a hit, though, which was good news, but even then he was still exhausted, barely able to hold the shield up.

The robots were dodging every strike he made, and even as he rolled to the side to avoid a blow he felt one of the grey machinations deliver a sharp stab to his back.

He checked his meters as he backed up.

 **[Jaune Arc|Lv3]**

 **[XP: 245/3000]**

 **[HP: 113/170 (0.85/s)]**

 **[SP: 56/170 (3.4/s)]**

 **[MP: 140/140 (1.3/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

Now. Now was the time to pull out a trick or two, or he was going to be in big trouble.

The four robots stared at him, an inhuman intensity on what could only be called a face, which was really just a giant camera. Or so he assumed, anyways.

Jaune wasn't really the biggest expert on Atlesian military robots.

His attention returned to the fight as the robots pushed forwards.

Jaune stabbed Crocea Mors into the ground, blade first, and outstretched his hand, arcane energy forming in his palm, and he released it, the mana bolt trailing across the arena and into the chest of one of the robots, blasting a hole in the side of its chest.

Jaune blocked an attack with his shield, a second mana bolt forming in his hand as he did so, the attacker losing its head to it.

He wasn't fast enough, however, as a strike knocked his shield, and shield arm, to the side, leaving him open for the other robot to attack from his other flank.

A sharp blade entered his side, and he felt the pain of it as it struck, knocking him to the ground.

Good news, the System made it so the wound only existed in numerical form.

Bad news, he'd lost his shield in the tumble, and Crocea Mors was still buried into the tile back where he had been standing.

Jaune, now only armed with only spells, faced down the two mechs.

They both slowly moved towards Jaune, blades deployed, menacing lights shining brightly.

There was really only one thing Jaune could do, but he had no idea if it would work or not.

Both arms came up, fingers splayed, and he willed mana into each.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Dual Mana Bolt (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now manifest a Mana Bolt in each hand, for twice the mana cost. XP and Level are the same as Mana Bolt, and gain whenever Mana Bolt is used, and vice versa._ _ **Level 1; XP 17/100.**_ **]**

Two mana bolts left his fingertips, and impacted against the chest of the first and the shoulder of the second, carving chunks out of them.

That was a close one, Jaune thought, panting as he hunched over, out of breath. He checked his meters as he regained his breath, and regained his armament.

 **[Jaune Arc|Lv3]**

 **[XP: 245/3000]**

 **[HP: 74/170 (0.85/s)]**

 **[SP: 67/170 (3.4/s)]**

 **[MP: 44/140 (1.3/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

So, he was down almost a hundred mana from the four shots he'd fired, which did make sense.

He spun his sword in his hand.

Jaune felt _Sixth Sense_ trigger, and he rolled to the side, as sparks flew off the tiles behind him.

' _A fifth robot?'_ Jaune thought in surprise as he lifted his shield to block the strike, staggering under the impact.

Jaune buckled far more than before, the robot seemingly able to deliver far more powerful strikes.

Jaune observed it, as it closed in on him.

 **[Atlesian Knight-130 (AK-130)]**

 **[Sergeant]**

 **[Robot, Level 1]**

 **[Health: Undamaged]**

What Sergeant meant was lost on Jaune as it struck again, blades hammering down on his shield once more.

Jaune took another blow with his shield, and swung Crocea Mors at the robot, which blocked the strike with its blades, before quickly swinging at him.

Jaune, without the time to bring his shield to bear, held the handle of Crocea Mors as best he could as the AK-130s blades impacted against his blade, sending Jaune back, wrist aching for a split second before _System Body_ nullified it.

Jaune needed an edge over this thing, or so the boy thought, as it continued to swing its blades, one after another impacting against Jaune's shield and knocking him back ever so slightly.

A quick glance at his meters told him he had fifty mana to work with, and so even as Jaune blocked yet another attack with his shield, he planned.

First, Jaune had to see what he could do with a Mana Bolt. Sheathing Crocea Mors into the top of his shield, Jaune used his free hand to congeal mana, forming a Mana Bolt.

The robot struck again, but once the attack was finished Jaune outstretched his hand and fired the Mana Bolt, the arcane energy streaming off and impacting against the far wall of the arena, the robot having avoided it completely.

That was bad.

Now Jaune only had twenty-five mana to work with, and it seemed that he wasn't going to be able to hit the robot with a simple Mana Bolt.

All of his spells, aside from Mana Bolt, cost more than twenty-five mana, and with his regen rate Jaune wasn't going to be able to buy time, especially at this rate.

The robot attacked once again, and Jaune felt himself be forced to one knee, shield arm aching, ceasing to ache, and aching again in a continuous loop of pain.

He couldn't keep this up, and with a roar he pushed himself up and forwards.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Battle Cry (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can perform a battle cry, which increases morale in all friendlies, decreases morale in all hostiles, and allows you to dip into the negative for SP, MP and AP, at the cost of HP and exhaustion[?]._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

Jaune paid the notification no mind as he focused mana, swinging his blade at the robot in his last-ditch attempt to kill the mechanical threat.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Slash (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now manifest mana into a bladed weapon, unleashing it in a slash that can hit enemies at short range. Consumes 60 MP per cast, length of slash is dependent of length of blade._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

The arcane energy that burst forth from the blade of Crocea Mors carried across the arena, effectively bisecting the robot, but Jaune barely paid attention, down on one knee and panting.

 **[Training Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 140 Skill XP!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Weapon Proficiency: One-Handed Melee**_ **has reached level 4!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Shield**_ **has reached level 4!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Shield Bash**_ **has reached level 2!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Mana Bolt**_ **has reached level 2!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Dodge**_ **has reached level 3!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Dual Mana Bolt**_ **has reached level 2!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Battle Cry**_ **has reached level 2!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Mana Slash**_ **has reached level 2!]**

 **[Ding!]**

 **[Due to constant physical exertion, you've gained 1 point of STR, and 1 point of END!]**

"Wave six complete! End of fight, your aura has reached the red! Next person, get ready!"

Jaune blinked as he stood to leave, only just noticing what had to be the biggest glaring thing he hadn't even noticed, let alone thought about.

' _Aura? But I don't have AP…'_ Jaune thought, bringing up his meters.

 **[Jaune Arc|Lv3]**

 **[XP: 245/3000]**

 **[HP: 35/162 (0.81/s)** _ **{35/180 (0.9/s)}**_ **]**

 **[SP: 93/162 (3.24/s)** _ **{93/180 (3.6/s)}**_ **]**

 **[MP: 0/126 (1.17/s)** _ **{0/140 (1.3/s)}**_ **]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[Exhausted I]**

Exhausted was new, something that Jaune noticed, and as he left the arena he reread his way back through all the notifications that had appeared during the final part of his fight.

Jaune read the description of _Battle Cry_ , and clicked the small question mark on exhaustion.

 **[Exhaustion]**

 **[Exhaustion is a status effect that can be inflicted, causing a temporary loss of all Stats. Each level of Exhaustion equals to -10% of a Stat. Exhaustion resets upon a full rest.]**

Well, that wasn't great. At least it wasn't too hard to get rid of, considering Jaune felt like he was capable of falling asleep where he stood.

He was getting distracted though, now wasn't the time to be focusing on status effects and debuffs, now was the time to be focusing on exactly why the machine designed specifically to detect, measure and output Aura values was detecting that he had Aura, and able to detect when he went into the red, despite not actually having anything to go into the red.

Jaune pondered it, rolling the thoughts and potential explanations around his head like a lottery wheel, hoping he'd get lucky and end up with the right answer.

Astronomical odds seemed to favour the blond boy as the answer occurred to him. Before the Exhaustion debuff, ten percent of his health was thirty-four HP. He'd slipped beneath that threshold when he used the combination of _Battle Cry_ and _Mana Slash_ , which meant that his HP was being read as Aura by the devices that measured such things.

Whatever that meant, he was sure that that was more significant than simply allowing him to bypass such devices.

He knew he wasn't even close to figuring out how that worked, and he was far too tired to even try to delve deeper into the issue, so he tabled it for further thought at a later time.

Jaune plopped down into an empty seat, the one he'd been sat in before, allowing himself to simply slump down, as he kept an eye on his meters, watching them slowly but surely fill back up.

SP was, unsurprisingly, the first to fill, followed by MP and then finally HP, the three bars, green, blue and red respectively, glowing slightly brighter than the screen itself.

"Blake Belladonna!" The voice called out, and Jaune snapped his eyes off his meters and towards the mysterious girl, who stood from her seat on the opposite side of the arena, putting the book she'd gotten from somewhere onto the bench.

Jaune would be lying if he wasn't a little worried about how well Blake would do. He'd seen her fight two Ursa, and they'd knocked her unconscious, so watching her go up against four enemies at once…

He wanted to remain positive though, so he shoved the negative, critical side of him to the edge, content to cheer his new friend on.

Blake deftly stepped inside the arena, drawing her weapon. Now that Jaune saw it, he was interested. He couldn't even begin to describe what it was, so he figured maybe the System would have a more informational opinion on it.

' _Observe'_ , Jaune thought, and he was rewarded with the exact details he was looking for.

 **[Gambol Shroud]**

 **[Variant Ballistic Chain Scythe (VBCS)]**

 **[Gambol Shroud is a very convoluted weapon requiring immense training to effectively wield. A combination of a katana, cleaver, pistol and kusarigama, this weapon is incredibly specialised and even more deadly.]**

 **[+ 5 AGI]**

"Woah…" Jaune murmured aloud. He'd never even heard of half of those words, especially never used in succession like that.

"Begin!" The voice called out.

Blake launched forwards without a sound, spinning as the thick cleaver of Gambol Shroud impacted against the first robot and, coincidentally, cleaved straight through. She didn't wait to see the results, instead already moving and striking the second robot.

The other two had enough time to deploy their weapons, blades sliding from where hands were as they were systematically decapitated.

The voice that had been announcing the event didn't even get a chance to say anything as the second wave deployed, weapons already at the ready, robots charging forwards in an attempt to actually land a hit on the raven-haired fighter.

She was already off, blade spinning as she deflected the barrage that the robot she was targeting was outputting, a quick slide underneath a half-hearted swipe and a fast hand movement leaving the robot in pieces and Blake standing there, katana in one hand and what seemed to be the cleaver in the other, which seemed to serve as the sheath.

The System hadn't been kidding when it said Gambol Shroud was a complicated, specialised weapon.

Blake quickly and easily dispatched the rest of the robots, and the third wave quickly afterwards, in the same amount of time as it took Jaune to destroy the entire first wave.

The fourth wave proved to be at least slightly more challenging as Blake was swarmed quickly, blades swiping back and forth in an attempt to actually hit her.

One managed to get close, and Jaune felt himself on the edge of his seat as the blade went through her back, piercing her front.

A gasp began to leave his lips, but Blake simply disappeared, her blade landing in the attacking robot's head from behind.

Choking back the gasp, Jaune watched in amazement as Blake quickly dispatched every single AK-130 that was sent her way, and soon enough wave thirteen had rolled around and Blake was still going strong.

She destroyed the sixth robot of wave thirteen, and the voice finally spoke up.

"Enough! You pass, Blake Belladonna. Next person, get ready!"

Blake simply sheathed her weapon and returned to her seat, picking up her book and resuming her reading.

Jaune stared, jaw wide, disbelief on his face.

Maybe he'd underestimated her.

* * *

The acceptance exams had come to an end, and as the crowd of potential students waited patiently for the results, Jaune was still stuck in somewhat disbelief, the images of Blake's fight, if you could even call something that one-sided a fight, still stuck in his head, playing again and again like a faulty movie.

"If I call out your name, you have passed, and successfully been enrolled in Beacon Academy," The announcer called, and Jaune snapped to attention.

Multiple names were called, and Jaune listened intently, trying to remember who had been before him, and who had been after.

"Jaune Arc. Blake Belladonna."

Two names, the first being unexpected and the second being completely expected.

Jaune was ecstatic, a massive smile on his face.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Huntsman: First Steps (Part 2).**_ **]**

 **[Successfully complete the Beacon Acceptance Exam.]**

 **[Reward: Accepted into Beacon Academy, 800 XP]**

This was it. Jaune was in Beacon.

His dream, ever since he was a kid, was to be a hero, and now here he was, fulfilling that dream as best he could.

One step closer.

He looked over to Blake, but she wasn't where he'd last seen her. In fact, she wasn't anywhere, the girl seemingly having disappeared.

He'd lost someone to celebrate with, but that wasn't going to put a damper on the situation, and he figured the best way to celebrate would be to go back to his hotel room and sleep, because he was realising, even as he thought about celebrating he could barely keep his eyes open.

Sleep seemed like such an inviting prospect, too.

* * *

"Jaune Arc, hmm?" The man asked, sipping a mug full of an undetermined beverage, steam wafting from the porcelain.

"Yes. He seemed somewhat capable during the acceptance exam, and managed to draw with the final robot of wave five, destroying it at the cost of dropping his aura into the red," The blonde haired woman said, adjusting her glasses as she referred to the clipboard in her hand.

"How did his Aura reach the red if he destroyed the robot?" The man asked, placing the mug on a coaster on his desk.

"I feel that showing you would be more informative." The woman placed a scroll in the hands of the man, the screen playing a video of Jaune's final strike.

The man frowned behind glasses, brown eyes narrowing as he watched.

"As you can see, he seems capable of wielding Aura in ways we've not seen before," The woman said, as the man handed back the scroll.

"That isn't Aura."

* * *

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Initiate]**

 **[Level: 3]**

 **[XP: 1045/3000]**

 **[HP: 180/180 (0.9/s)]**

 **[SP: 180/180 (3.6/s)]**

 **[MP: 140/140 (1.3/s)]**

 **[AP: 0/0]**

 **[STR: 17]**

 **[END: 18]**

 **[AGI: 12]**

 **[INT: 14]**

 **[WIS: 13]**

 **[CHA: 11]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 10]**

 **[Lien: 185]**

* * *

 **Well, better late then never, I suppose. Apologies for the late chapter, but things popped up that were more pressing. Nothing bad, thankfully.**

 **Now, Jaune's enrolled in Beacon through legitimate means, but that doesn't mean our enigmatic headmaster isn't interested in him.**

 **Also, no, I won't be pairing Jaune and Adam, that was a joke for anyone who didn't figure that out. Although...**

 **Now, reviews. There's been quite a lot, so I'll try my best to answer the ones that aren't just "Good!" or "I like this!", even though I really appreciate it! Firstly, however, I should address Dungeons.**

 **Dungeons are something I will be doing, but I think the best way to do them would to be less of a slog through enemy after enemy in room after room and more of a thing that can be found that has a particularily difficult enemy in it. Think of the Beringel from the Volume 4 Trailer as a dungeon boss, and the ruined village as a dungeon, and same with the Nuckelavee, of which's name reminds me of the Knuckles and Knuckles with Knuckles meme. I have to give credit to ParadoxVictor with his "like Darksouls" suggestion, which gave my the idea in the first place.** **They may also feature stuff from other canons, and as Alvelvnor suggested it may contain things such as Zerg, Flood and Diablo (Whatever is in Diablo, looks like I have some wiki's to read.) Unlike what Alvelvnor suggested, however, I won't be just putting them straight in, instead I'll be creating Grimm variants and styling them after the other canons.**

 **someUntel: You know, I don't know why that didn't occur to me. Maybe Jaune just said he was a huntsman and the staff just blanched and waved it off, or maybe the Golden Winds isn't as reputable as they pretend to be :P**

 **adislt: I think you're onto something...**

 **janed12000: I'm trying my best to make the fights seem at least slightly less repetitive, and mana spam just isn't an option, considering the mana pool Jaune is working with. I'm approaching this with a balanced frame of mind, so spam-firing mana arrows isn't a great option. Enemies will scale alongside Jaune anyway, so what 1 mana arrow does now might be what 10 mana arrows does in 10 levels, so to speak.**

 **Music Minded: When I said I had an idea for giving others mana I didn't mean anything like Ruby or Blake ending up with mana bolt or anything along those lines. What I meant was something I won't get into now for fear of spoilers of something I haven't even put into words. As for party system, I'm not the biggest fan of these either. They're pretty much just ways of making everyone else capable of things Jaune is capable of, and it ruins any unique aspect Jaune brings to the table. What point is there in Jaune even being there, except to give everyone the System, right? It would be better off if he uses AoE buff spells, and more interesting anyway. And don't worry about ranting, there's nothing I don't love more than a good rant.**

 **SentinalSlice: Thanks for the feedback, and I like the suggestion. Honestly, Mana Blast is the working name for it, and it is planned to be learned at some point, alongside some defensive spells.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Bullion is pretty good, to be honest. Probably my favourite so far. Dex weapons are a definite, although it would technically be Agi weapons, crafting will be a feature soonish, and tactics seem like Jaune's forte. Religion, though? I suppose the Brothers need some fanfic loving. Thanks for popping in once again, always nice to hear from you, and especially so for the fic suggestions.**

 **infadinityfollower: You mention summoning, and that's something that not only most fanfic but the original Gamer manghwa seems to ignore, or use once and then forget about. I do want summoning to become something that at least gets used once, and maybe I'll try something different with it.**

 **kaxipoptos: Skills will evolve, I already have a few listed in the great big fuckoff spreadsheet I've mentioned a few times, of which has more details than neccessary. Seriously, I spent twenty minutes writing weapon descriptions for the Atlesian Military's weaponry we've both seen in canon and stuff that I've had to come up with myself. I get carried away easily.**

 **Alvelvnor: I'm going to assume you read my little notice on dungeons. Always nice to hear your suggestions, you're one of my more vocal followers, haha. I appreciate that you clarified that you were joking for the people who read reviews and don't realise that. Both Arc of the Revolution and Immortal are fun reads, and for anyone who hasn't go give them a shot.**

 **Ol' Diggy: Jaune distracting her has now become a joke. This may become a running joke. I'm looking forward to writing more socially-inept Jaune. Get ready for attempted flirting with the one and only sharp-tongued heiress.**

 **Fidgeter: Well, someone had to do it, and I can't tell if it was myself or Yoshtar's Gaming for Glory v2 that used it first, although i did mention that to them :P**

 **ParadoxVictor: Tadah! Mana Slash! You and I were on the same wavelength when it came to naming that, because that was what my notes called it. My dungeon notice should credit you, too. Cheers!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	5. Of Courtyards and Libraries

**Well, I said I would get a chapter out for the usual time, and here we are! Well, it's a day earlier for me as of editing this, but that's even better! I was really on a streak the past two chapters, I pretty much wrote this entire thing in one sitting. Enjoy!**

* * *

Morning broke, as it tended to, and Jaune's eyes opened to the early morning sunlight streaming into his room through the window.

Jaune promptly closed his eyes, a groan accompanying him rolling over and frowning.

A second passed, Jaune slowly slipping back down into unconsciousness.

Jaune snapped his eyes open, stumbling out of his bed and grabbing at his scroll, hurriedly checking the time.

The moment he saw the time the memory of a HUD clock appeared in his mind, and Jaune sighed, sitting down on the bed.

Today was the day. The first day of Beacon Academy.

Jaune was both excited and terrified.

If he were to be completely honest, he felt like that justified an entirely new emotion, so therefore he felt excitified.

Territed?

Neither sounded as good aloud as in his head, and so Jaune pushed the thoughts that were clouding his mind to the side, and set about getting himself ready.

Clean Pumpkin Pete hoodie, clean jeans, gloves, belt, cheap armor, all equipped.

Crocea Mors sheathed and hooked to his belt.

Hair messy and unkempt, but in the kind of way he hoped looked intentional, despite it very much being not at all intentional.

Jaune looked at himself in the mirror, and decided to double check the list he'd just checked, although considering this was the fourth time now it was more of a quadruple check.

Once the check was finished, again, Jaune spared a glance at the time, noting he only had a few minutes to make it to the shuttle bay to catch the airship that students would be catching.

He was out the door in a flash, _Sprint_ active as he hurtled down the roads and streets that made up the path he was taking.

A breathless Jaune slid to a halt at the shuttle bay, joining the throngs of new students, some standing alone, some crowded together, some saying farewell to family and friends.

The last one made Jaune feel a little guilty, but he shrugged it off, making his way through the dense mass of teenagers, sliding between gaps in an attempt to get a good spot on the as yet unarrived airship.

He didn't notice Blake, unfortunately, but if he were to think about it that was probably because she didn't want to be seen, considering her actions the day prior.

The airship touched down, and what an airship it was. If you compared a Bullhead to a land vehicle you'd end up making the comparison with a bus.

The airship was comparable with an entire street of buses, and it could fly. Before the System this would've made Jaune prefer to climb the Beacon cliffs, but now, with his recent immunity to air-sickness, he could only feel excitement as he clambered aboard with the throngs of teenagers, taking a spot near a window so that he could enjoy the view that he was soon to be presented with. If he was lucky he might even be able to spot the outer limits of Domremy.

The takeoff was as smooth as possible, a credit to the pilots, as the only physical feeling as a slight shudder as the engines flared, the airship rising into the morning sky with ease.

Jaune watched out the window, quickly realising that he was on the wrong side of the airship to be able to see Domremy, but it wasn't too big a loss, because the sight of the ocean was plenty enough to quench his sightseeing thirst.

"The robbery was lead by Roman Torchwick, who continues to evade authorities. If you have any information on his whereabouts please contact the Vale Police Department. Back to you Lisa."

The voice blared out of speakers, and Jaune turned to watch as the screen changed from a picture of what was presumably the man in question to someone Jaune was somewhat familiar with, lavender hair pristine as she sat in her chair in front of her desk.

"Thank you Cyril. In other news, this Saturday's Faunus Civil Rights protest turned dark when members of the White Fang disrupted the ceremony. The once peaceful organisation has now disrupted-"

Jaune didn't get to listen to the rest of the bulletin as the screen shut itself off, replaced by a holographic projection of a blonde woman, hands clasped behind her back.

"Hello, and welcome to Beacon. My name is Glynda Goodwitch. You are among a privileged few who have received the honour of being selected to attend this prestigious academy. Our world is experiencing an incredible time of peace, and as future Huntsman and Huntresses it is your duty to uphold it. You have demonstrated the courage needed for such a task, and now it is our turn to provide you with the knowledge and the training to protect our world."

Jaune listened intently, as did every other person aboard the airship, as she spoke, before coming to a startlingly obvious conclusion.

It was pre-recorded. There was no way that woman was able to deliver that entire speech flawlessly without it having already been recorded.

It wasn't all Jaune had drawn from listening, of course, he wasn't a moron, but it was what was standing out the most. He didn't know why that was what he fixated on, but it was what it was.

The view out the window widened as the airship reached its peak altitude, the cliffs of Beacon standing out even more so, alongside much of the surrounding area. If it hadn't drawn attention before it certainly had now, as people clambered to get a good spot.

Two girls squeezed in not too far from Jaune, and he overheard as they spoke.

"Look, you can see Signal from up here," The first one, both dressed and themed in black and red. "I guess home isn't too far after all."

The second one, gold locks untamed and immense, spoke as she slung an arm around the younger one. "Beacon's our home now."

Jaune smiled a small smile, turning away and staring out the window like every other student.

The rest of the flight passed by quick, and soon the airship was pulling up to Beacon's dock, the vast expanse of deck inside quickly becoming emptier and emptier as people piled out onto the waiting land, eager for their first glance around the campus as official students.

Jaune wasn't an exception, and despite the fact that he was one of the few who'd been here before, even if it was for a short time, he was still restless with anticipation at what his future held.

He followed the crowd as they made their way down the wide thoroughfare towards the main courtyard, lush gardens lining the path, leaves rustling in the breeze.

Honestly, it was beautiful, and Jaune hadn't really admired the scenery the previous day, to worried about his attempt at the acceptance exam.

Now, though, he had time to gaze, admiring the seemingly infinite marble arches and pillars that comprised a majority of Beacon's architecture.

Of course, the serene peace couldn't last forever, as Jaune heard a cacophonous explosion.

A quick turn had Jaune notice a girl in white wandering off in anger, the tail-end of Blake as she vanished into the crowd, and the red and black themed girl from earlier on the airship, laying on the ground.

He walked over and offered a hand to the girl.

"I'm Jaune." He said, introducing himself as he helped her up.

"Ruby…" She said, taking his hand and clambering back to her feet.

"How'd you end up on the floor in a crater?" Jaune asked, confusion evident on his face.

"The explosion was an accident!" The girl, Ruby, exclaimed.

Jaune chuckled slightly as the two began walking, eager to catch up with the now absent horde of teenagers.

The silence, because neither party seemed to be skilled at carrying a conversation, stretched on for too long, or at least too long in the opinion of Ruby.

"So… I got this thing," Ruby said, reaching behind her and drawing out a weapon of some description, red and black much like herself.

The some description part of the weapon was suddenly illuminated as it unfolded, revealing what could only be feasibly called severe overkill.

"Woah!" Jaune exclaimed, stumbling out of the way as the blade of the weapon hammered into the ground. "Is that a scythe?"

"It's also a customizable, high impact sniper rifle," Ruby replied.

"A wha?" Jaune asked, a little out of his depth.

"It's also a gun."

"Huh." Jaune uttered a sound of both confusion and understanding, the paradoxical nature seeming to only further confuse him. He did, however, think it was pretty damn cool, and as such made that apparent. "That's cool!"

"What about you?" Ruby asked, eyeing the sheath on his hip.

"Oh, uh, I got this sword," Jaune said, drawing Crocea Mors from the sheath that was also called Crocea Mors.

"Ooh," Ruby ooh-ed.

"Yeah, I've got a shield too," Jaune continued, hooking the sheath on his forearm and deploying its shield form.

"So, what do they do?" Ruby asked, interested.

"The shield gets smaller, so when I get tired of carrying it I can just put it away," Jaune answered.

"But… wouldn't it weigh the same?" Ruby asked.

Jaune sighed. "Yeah."

"Well, I'm kind of a dork when it comes to weapons, I guess I did go a little overboard in designing it," Ruby said, admiring her own handiwork, sending a gentle caress down the barrel.

"Wait, you made that?" Jaune exclaimed, shock and awe as apparent in his voice as in his mind.

"Of course! All students at Signal forge their own weapons. Didn't you make yours?"

Jaune looked at the blade he held in his hand, a slight sigh escaping his lips. "It's a hand-me-down. My great-great-grandfather used it to fight in the war. Besides, I didn't go to Signal, I came from a small town out near the border, Domremy. I passed the acceptance exam."

"Oh. Well, it sounds more like a family heirloom to me," Ruby said. "Well, I like it. Not many people have an appreciation for the classics these days."

"Yeah, the classics," Jaune said, perking up a little.

"So, why'd you help me out back there, in the courtyard?" Ruby asked.

"Eh, why not. My mum always says, strangers are just friends you haven't met yet," Jaune replied, as the two began walking again.

"So, where are we going?" Ruby queried.

"Oh, I don't know, I was following you," Jaune answered, scratching the back of his head.

The unasked question of where they were supposed to go was answered rather rapidly as the heard an announcement blare over speakers.

"All new students, please head to the main assembly hall."

"Well, that answers that, I guess," Jaune said, discreetly checking his map. Beacon had been somewhat mapped out, and the main assembly hall was marked with a little blue dot. "This way, I think."

The two began walking, pavement underfoot as they made their way to the first assembly of their Hunter-in-training careers.

* * *

"Ruby, over here! I saved you a spot!"

Both Jaune and Ruby looked over to where the blonde girl from the airship was stood, waving at Ruby.

"Oh, hey, I've gotta go, I'll see you after the ceremony!" Ruby said, rushing off to join the blonde.

Jaune just nodded, wandering over to the side and finding a comfortable spot to stand and wait for whatever staff member felt like addressing them.

Jaune didn't have to wait long.

The clearing of a throat sounded across the hall, and almost everyone snapped their heads to attention, silence descending faster than Jaune's father for breakfast.

"I'll… keep this brief. You have travelled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills, and when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people. But I look amongst you, and all I see is wasted energy, in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

The man, green clothed, finished his speech, and for a second Jaune could've sworn locked eyes with him, but only for a brief moment.

The woman, who Jaune remembered to be Glynda Goodwitch, stepped up to the mic as the man walked off the stage.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow, your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed."

Jaune watched as people filtered out, breaking off into groups to explore the campus.

The man, presumably the headmaster, had stared right at him. He had to have, there was no other explanation.

Did he know about the System?

Did it even matter if he did?

Jaune wasn't sure if hiding the System was the right idea or not, but the way the man had stared at him sent chills down his spine. It was like the man knew, and disliked him for it.

Or maybe the man didn't know and he'd just done something to rub him the wrong way.

What Jaune should've done was _Observe_ the man. That would've been a smart decision, but Jaune had been distracted by what was possibly the worst sounding motivational speech he'd ever heard.

The crowd of students was almost non-existent now, and Jaune decided that mapping the campus was probably a smart idea.

He did have a few hours to kill, after all.

* * *

 **[Map Updated!]**

 **[Beacon Campus Grounds added to Map]**

Jaune had been wandering around for at least an hour by now, and despite the fact that the time he had to be in the ballroom was still a little while away, Jaune was out of ideas.

Maybe he could head back to the gym he'd spotted and work on gaining some STR and END, or he could find a nice book in the library and give it a read, hoping it would boost his INT, which he was in desperate need of.

Jaune pondered for a moment, considering his options, and made a decision, rounding a corner and walking towards the library.

The library was a big building with architecture to match the rest of Beacon, although the inside felt much smaller due to the thousands upon thousands of books that littered the shelves that reached up, almost to the ceiling.

Stepping through the door Jaune was greeted by pleasant air-conditioning and the almost silent sounds of people reading, various students engaged in study.

Jaune knew that whilst the semester started a week earlier for students who were already enrolled, the new first-years, like him, started today.

He noticed a few fellow first-years, engaged in whispered conversation, clustered in various chairs and corners. He didn't join them, however, instead walking into the maze of bookshelves that coated the library, eyes glancing over titles.

He was looking for something specific, something that might explain what the System was, or at least explain Semblances in general.

Alphabetically sorted books glared out at him as he passed them by, reaching the section labeled 'S', which he began searching through, title after title proving to be less useful than he'd hoped.

"Ah-ha!" Jaune exclaimed quietly as he drew a book from the bookshelf, looking over the cover. "Semblances and the Soul, this looks like it might help."

He retreated from the bookshelves, finding a quiet spot where he took a seat, flicking open to the first page.

'What is a Semblance, and how does the soul affect it? A Semblance is the manifestation of one's innate and personal power as an ability unique to each individual, with the effects varying greatly from user to user. That's a lot of words that sound all professional, but seeing as the target audience for this book is someone who doesn't study Aura and Semblances for a living allow me to give you a better understanding. A Semblance is a power that is unique to an individual with an active Aura. There are extenuating circumstances for certain semblances, such as the inherited glyphs of the Schnee family, but Semblances like these are far and few between.'

Jaune read the passage, and read it again, before moving onto the next.

'Semblances have few limits, and are capable of completely rewriting the way a body works in some instances. However, one major limit is that a Semblance requires Aura to use, and as such requires a person's Aura to be unlocked. Without Aura, there is no Semblance to be had, because the soul is locked behind Aura.'

Jaune put the book down, face paling.

What had the System told him when he'd first woken up?

His Aura had been locked temporarily?

So, his Semblance, the System, wasn't really a Semblance at all? Or was the book wrong?

How would he unlock his Aura if it had been locked by the System?

The answer came in a swift notification.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Unlocking the Soul**_ **]**

 **[Unlock your Aura by focusing inwards, and awakening your soul from within]**

 **[Reward: 500 XP, Aura Unlocked]**

Focus inwards, huh. It wasn't the clearest explanation, but Jaune figured he might as well give it a try.

He concentrated, closing his eyes and plunging his mind deep into a state of focus.

A moment passed, a second moment, but there was nothing. No feeling of power, no soul, whatever that felt like, nothing.

He didn't even know what he was supposed to be looking for. Granted, he didn't know much about Aura to begin with, so maybe that would be a better starting point.

Standing up, Jaune paced back towards the bookshelves, luckily not having to delve too deep to get to the 'A' section, considering it was the first letter in the alphabet and all that. He searched through title after title, finally stopping upon a book simply entitled 'Aura'. That was promising.

He withdrew it from the shelf, and walked back to his seat, sitting down and opening the book.

There was nothing inside.

Jaune frowned, turning the page. Also blank.

Third page blank, fourth page blank.

Fifth, sixth, seventh; blank, blank and blank.

Jaune opened a random page in the middle of the book.

Blank.

"Huh."

Jaune wondered if he'd just pulled out a book designed to trick people, but he gave it the benefit of the doubt, quickly using _Observe_.

 **[Skill Book]**

 **[Aura Control]**

 **[Consume: Yes/No]**

Oh. _Oh._

A skill book. That made slightly more sense, although what a skill book was doing being completely blank was odd. What if someone else tried to read it, would the System give them the skill?

No, that was silly. The System was his Semblance, it couldn't effect other people, that would be ridiculous. It just effected him. And Grimm. And books, and food, and keys, and reality itself to give him an inventory…

Jaune filed those thoughts away for later in favour of using the skill book.

He tapped yes, and watched as the book glowed a light blue. His eyes closed as he felt something foreign enter his mind, and he felt the onset of a headache appear and be nullified by the combo of _System Mind_ and _System Body._

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Aura Control (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you have unlocked your Aura, and now can control and wield it._ _**Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

 **[Aura now unlocked!]**

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Unlocking the Soul**_ **]**

 **[Unlock your Aura by focusing inwards, and awakening your soul from within]**

 **[Reward: 500 XP, Aura Unlocked]**

 **[Perk Unlocked!]**

 **[Lineage of the Arcs]**

 **[Total AP x4]**

That was a lot of information to process, and process it Jaune would, as soon as the surge of power he was feeling receded.

He decided now was probably a good time to take a look at his meters.

 **[Jaune Arc|Lv3]**

 **[XP: 1545/3000]**

 **[HP: 180/180 (0.9/s)]**

 **[SP: 180/180 (3.6/s)]**

 **[MP: 140/140 (1.3/s)]**

 **[AP: 1440/1440 (0.36/s)]**

Woah. No wonder he felt so good, his Aura was massive! Or, he thought it was massive. He'd unlocked a perk that quadrupled his Aura, so maybe he was stronger than most. Or at least, more Aura-ed. Aurified?

Now Jaune tried focusing inwards, and this time it was so much more different than the first time he'd tried. Now, he could feel his Aura, flowing through his veins like so much blood, and he felt alive.

He lifted a palm, and concentrated, and watched as a glowing white light enveloped his hand, shining brightly and distracting the other library patrons.

Jaune cut off the Aura with a wince, a muttered apology and a scratch of the back of his head, as he decided to return the books he'd taken, depositing them back where he'd found them and heading out of the library, bent on finding a peaceful spot near a courtyard where he could practise and test his newfound Aura.

This wasn't too difficult, as there weren't that many students lingering around, and the ones who were were first-years, and far too excited to be paying him any attention, which suited him just fine for now.

He planted himself amongst the flora, and concentrated once more, willing his Aura to coat his hand, and it responded with ease, flowing around like a protective bubble of energy.

He knew people used Aura to protect themselves, like some kind of force-field, but he didn't know how it was done, nor did he know how to make it instinctual much like every other first-year obviously did, but he had some time to kill, a new thing to experiment with, and determination.

Lots and lots of determination.

Almost too much.

Well, not too much, he didn't think there was such a thing as too much determination, but he had enough determination to make what he wanted to happen happen.

He focused, and willed his Aura to travel down his arm, and, sure enough, it did as he bid, however lethargically.

It reached his shoulder, and he moved his arm. Aura didn't seem to impede his motion, which was good. He willed it to cover his torso, and slowly, very slowly, it crawled across, reaching his other shoulder and hips.

He willed it to continue, and it did so, ever so slowly running across the rest of his body like a carpet of glowing power given life.

If Jaune saw himself he would realise he looked a little bit silly, a teen sitting on some grass covered head to toe in glowing white light, but he wasn't capable of out-of-body experiences yet, so he didn't realise that he looked just the slightest bit odd.

Ruby, however, did notice him, as did the blonde girl. "Hey Jaune!"

Jaune snapped his head towards the sound, and felt his Aura slip from his grasp, receding across his body and back inside, the glow fading away like dying embers.

"Oh, hey there Ruby," Jaune greeted, waving to the girl.

"Oh, Jaune, this is my older sister, Yang," Ruby said, motioning to the blonde girl. "Yang, this is Jaune, my first friend at Beacon."

Jaune waved a greeting at Yang, who smiled at him. "So, Ruby, we haven't even been here for a whole day and you're already getting to know boys, huh?"

Ruby turned a shade reminiscent of her name, spluttering at her sister.

Jaune, however, laughed, and at this Yang quirked an eyebrow.

"So, Jaune, what were you doing with your Aura?" Ruby said, once her face had returned to the normal pallor.

"Um, I was just exercising it, that's all," Jaune replied, scratching at the back of his head.

"Right, well, Yang and I were just heading to go secure a spot in the ballroom. Wanna tag along?" Ruby asked, a smile on her face.

Jaune stood up, dusting himself off and nodding in agreement. "Sure thing."

He joined the two girls in walking towards the ballroom, joining in the conversation whenever he felt necessary, which usually meant him being the butt of Yang's various jokes, or groaning alongside Ruby whenever she made a terrible pun.

And honestly, if Jaune were to say so, he was happy, even if deep down guilt was eating away at him.

He'd lied to his family, and put himself in a dangerous situation to fulfill a dream that he'd had since he was a child.

It was selfish, and yet somehow selfless. He didn't want to be a hero because of the fame and glory, he wanted to be a hero to help people. That made it a little better, didn't it?

Even as he clambered into his sleeping bag not so far away from where the girls had claimed their spots, having luckily remembered to not put on the onesie and instead toss on a pair of sweats he'd brought from home, his mind was filled with conflicting feelings of pride and guilt.

Even as he closed his eyes, the lights went out, and silence filled the ballroom, Jaune still felt conflicted.

He felt conflicted all the way up until he drifted unconscious, and then he felt nothing at all.

* * *

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Initiate]**

 **[Level: 3]**

 **[XP: 1045/3000]**

 **[HP: 180/180 (0.9/s)]**

 **[SP: 180/180 (3.6/s)]**

 **[MP: 140/140 (1.3/s)]**

 **[AP: 1440/1440 (0.36/s)]**

 **[STR: 17]**

 **[END: 18]**

 **[AGI: 12]**

 **[INT: 14]**

 **[WIS: 13]**

 **[CHA: 11]**

 **[LCK: 10]**

 **[Skill Points: 10]**

 **[Lien: 115]**

* * *

 **Now, as usual, reviews and responses. Firstly, holy shit you guys. Over 300 followers, and Jaune hasn't even completed the Initiation yet! Thanks for all of you stopping by, I really appreciate you guys.**

 **someUntel: Sword beams _are_ really friggin' cool. However, why limit Jaune? What about sword beams and a gun. Or sword beams and two guns. The list is endless!**

 **OutOfReality08: Side quests are an interesting one, and for reference the current main questline is Huntsman: First Steps. Everything else is technically a side-quest, so if Jaune wanted to play hardcore mode going the entire fic without Aura would've been a way to do it.**

 **Master DK: Well, Grimm spawn, right? What's stopping Grimm from respawning?**

 **Alvelvnor: For a hobby, I'm thinking Jaune's guitar will come up a few times. Who knows, maybe I'll write a song. (I won't, unless people REALLY want me too.)**

 **Draxinus: As for fighting styles, I would if I knew the names to any fighting styles. Maybe I'll make some up, maybe I'll talk to a mate who does that kind of thing for fun. Mana, ooh boy are we going to have some fun.**

 **Mecharic: You know, there are so many stories that maintain the 4-man team concept from canon, so who knows, maybe I'll just have teams not exist, only partners. I'm still not sure how I want it to play out.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Hoo boy, there's a lot here. No joke, I'd read a whole story about Joyce, and this review is certainly indepth. I'm stealing the still pool in a rainstorm thirty chapters down the line, that's too damn good to pass up. As for the dungeon thing, I could write a few hundred words on all sorts of things, but I'll save that for actually writing the story and instead say that you've pretty much nailed everything I was hoping to go for.**

 **infadinityfollower: Sentient summons, this is something I need to think about. Would any of you have a problem with OCs, because I can write them, and whilst they wouldn't be significant in any way, I'm not sure if anyone would have a problem with it.**

 **And that's about it for review responses for this chapter. For those of you I didn't respond to, I still read them, and still appreciate them, I just don't want to inflate the chapter any more than these already do, but the ones I respond to do concern others, and the future of Systema.**

 **Anyways, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	6. Arachnophobia or Ornithophobia?

**Alas, the initiation chapter. I always feel hit or miss with these chapters, and I've rewritten this one twice over already, and to be honest I think it's as good as I can get it right now. Were I to be more comfortable writing all the characters it would most likely feel a little more natural, but I still don't have the greatest grasp on the characterisation of the main eight. Coincedentally, the members of JNPR are the hardest to write, for me, except Jaune, but I think that's just cause I'm pretty damn awkward myself.**

 **Also, there are over 400 of you following this now. Christ alive, I don't know where to even begin. Thanks!?**

 **Anyway, I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Jaune missed his cosy hotel room already.

If he'd thought the ballroom was crowded last night, the amount of people clamouring for the communal bathrooms was certainly enough to change his mind.

Once he finally, after a significant amount of time waiting, managed to actually shower and change, Jaune walked into the locker room, bent on retrieving Crocea Mors and his armor from the locker he'd stored them in, in an attempt to keep up appearances.

There was still that niggling feeling in the back of his mind that said keep the System hidden, and his suspicions were only confirmed when he remembered the way the headmaster had looked at him.

He reached the spot where his locker was, but two girls stood in front of it, conversing.

The first one was short, her snow-white hair done up in an off-center ponytail, and now that Jaune looked at her he noticed that she was the girl that had been with Ruby and Blake when Ruby had exploded.

The second one was almost as tall as he was, long red hair tied up in a ponytail with a bronze circlet that matched her bronze armor.

Jaune thought he recognized her from somewhere, but he couldn't place it.

He figured he should probably start using _Observe_ more often anyway, so he did so.

 **[Weiss Schnee]**

 **[Huntress-In-Training, Level 11]**

 **[Pyrrha Nikos]**

 **[Huntress-In-Training, Level 16]**

Jaune was speechless. That was the highest level he'd seen thus far, and she was even higher than Blake. What was this Pyrrha capable of?

' _Confidence, Jaune, all you need is confidence. Get either of them on a team with you, easy peasy lemon squeezy,'_ thought Jaune, stepping forward.

"So, I was thinking maybe we could be on a team together?" Weiss said.

"Well, that sounds grand," Pyrrha replied.

"Great!" Weiss exclaimed, and Jaune figured this was the perfect time to butt in.

"You know who else is great? Me, Jaune Arc, nice to meet you two," Jaune said, suave as hell in his opinion.

Weiss dead-stared at Jaune, crossing her arms.

"Nice to meet you Jaune," Pyrrha greeted.

"So, I heard you two talking about teams, and I figured what better place for the two of you then on a team with me," Jaune ventured, inwardly hoping neither of them saw through his ruse.

"Jaune, is it? Do you happen to know who you're talking to?" Weiss asked, and Jaune froze for a second.

He knew their names, but they hadn't told him that yet, so he couldn't just say that.

"Uh… no?"

"I'm Weiss Schnee, and this is Pyrrha Nikos," Weiss explained.

"Hello again!" Pyrrha greeted with a wave.

"Pyrrha graduated top of her class at Sanctum Academy, as did I in Mantle Academy," Weiss explained.

"I've never heard of either of those places," Jaune replied.

"She's won the Mistral Regional Tournament four years in a row, a new record, and I'm the heiress of the Schnee Dust Company!" Weiss exclaimed.

"The what?" Jaune asked, confused.

At this point, Weiss gave up. "She's on the front of every Pumpkin Pete's Marshmallow Flakes box!"

Jaune's eyes lit up in recognition. "That's you! I knew I remembered you from somewhere! They only do that for star athletes and cartoon characters!"

"Yeah… It was pretty cool. Sadly the cereal isn't very good for you," Pyrrha said.

"So, after hearing all of this, do you really think you are in a position to ask either of us to be on your team?" Weiss asked.

"No, I guess not," Jaune said with a sigh.

"Actually Jaune, I think you'd make a great leader," Pyrrha offered.

"Oh, stop it," Jaune said, scratching the back of his head.

"No, seriously, stop it, this kind of behaviour should not be encouraged!" Weiss exclaimed.

"Well, sounds like spots are filling up quick on Team Jaune," Jaune said, leaning over towards Weiss. "I'm not supposed to do this, but I might be able to pull a few strings, get you a spot, whaddya say?"

Weiss physically recoiled, gesturing to Pyrrha to do something.

Weiss's pleading was answered as Jaune felt _Sixth Sense_ tingle for a split second before the hood of his hoodie was snagged by a red and bronze projectile, nailing him to a far locker.

"I'm sorry!" Came the call from Pyrrha.

"Would all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation, again, all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff immediately." The voice was unmistakably Professor Goodwitch's, and as such the students inside the locker room began filing out.

Pyrrha walked over and withdrew her weapon from both Jaune's hoodie and the locker behind him. "It was nice meeting you."

"Likewise," Jaune groaned, as he slumped to the floor.

"Having some trouble there Ladykiller?"

Jaune looked up to see both Ruby and Yang standing there, Ruby offering a hand.

He gratefully took it, and the girl helped him up.

"C'mon Jaune, let's get your gear and go," Ruby said.

The two of them walked towards Jaune's locker, and he retrieved his equipment.

"When I said immediately, I meant immediately!" Goodwitch's voice blared over the loudspeaker, and Yang, Ruby and Jaune all paled, picking up speed.

* * *

The picturesque beauty of the Beacon Cliffs was only comparable to the amount of wind that it featured, gusting around and blowing Jaune's hair every-which way it felt like at the time.

It was doing the same to others, and whilst some featured short hair that didn't bother them, some, like Yang, were suffering a rather significant amount, the blonde occasionally giving off splutters and coughs as hair worked its way inside her mouth and eyes.

Once Jaune focused less on his hair in his face and more on the scenery, he took in the two intimidating figures of the headmaster and Professor Goodwitch, one standing there with a rather passive expression and the other with impatience, respectively.

The other students stood atop metal platforms, all marked with the Beacon Academy logo, and Jaune quickly took a spot, standing upright and straight-backed, hoping his prior posture was the reason the headmaster had disliked him.

It appeared that poor posture was _not_ in fact the reason the headmaster disliked him, as the passive gaze that passed over each and every student changed as it passed over Jaune, before reverting back to its previous expression as it left him.

Now was the moment Jaune decided to _Observe_ the two members of staff that stood in front of him.

 **[Ozpin]**

 **[C̨͇͇͑̅̎̒́ͦͮ͡o̠̙̮̰̙̮͙̟̒ͥ̎̍͗̓ͣ́r͍ͤͭ͗͛̍r̴̍̌̾ͫ͘ͅū̱̭̙̬̩̫ͩ̂pͩ͑̇͗̒̏͆ͨ҉҉͚̀t̸̡͓̗̱̻̠͈̝̹ͨ͐ͤ̓̚e̎̏̍̿̃̎̑҉̜̯̞͉̮̟͍̜̣̕͞d̵̰̪̮̜̂ͯ̽̍͌͗͊͋̕:̙̣̪̩̲͈̓̉̔͗̆̂͑͢͞ ̸̟̬͇͍̲͗̈́R̀ͭͥ̽ͬ̄҉͘͏̩͚̹̜e̸̵̘͖̭̮͍̫ͫͧͫ̔̚͞q̷̯̳͙̦͊̔̈́ũ̸͙̺͕ͫ̿́͝i͉̬̳͔ͮ̔̈̓ͩ͌̃̊͜͟r͍͇̼̯͍̘̫̅̕͠͞ͅe̷̟͚̣͉͙͊ͩͥ̑ͯͮ̂̏́͘š̸͈͔͖͎͝ ͓̪̮̭͚̾̍ͤ̃Ṟ̷̛̙̺͕̯̺̙ͥͯ͜ͅe̩̼̳̤̺̜͍ͬ̿͌́͞b̷̹ͩͬo͇̞̺̳̝͗̇̈́ͭ̽͊̌̽͗ô͉͕̳̞t̴̵̮͕ͪ̌́̊ͩ͗]**

 **[Glynda Goodwitch]**

 **[Vice-Headmistress, Level 43]**

Oh. That wasn't good. Jaune couldn't make out any details on Ozpin aside from name.

Either Ozpin was so grossly powerful it broke the System, or something was preventing the System from reading it.

Either option wasn't great, but Jaune snapped out of staring blankly into air to look at the headmaster, as he began to speak.

"For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest," Headmaster Ozpin spoke, adding no further explanation.

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumours about the assignment of teams. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates… today," Glynda explained, and Jaune paled.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon, so it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with which you can work well. That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years," Ozpin said, a slight smile on his face.

"What!?" Ruby and Jaune both exclaimed, amongst the shocked gasps and whispers that followed the explanation.

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way, do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die. You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one, and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"

Jaune stared at Ozpin, before speaking up. "Yeah, um, sir?"

"Good, now, take your positions," Ozpin said, ignoring Jaune completely.

Everyone began taking stances, preparing for something.

"Um, sir, I've got a, uh, a question?" Jaune ventured a second time.

Weiss was launched off the cliff with grace and poise.

"So, this landing strategy thing, what is it? Are you like, dropping us off, or…?" Jaune asked, despite Ozpin's seeming lack of attention.

"No. You will be falling," Ozpin replied, leveling a stare at Jaune which made him feel ten degrees colder.

"Oh, I see… So, did you hand out parachutes for us?" Jaune asked.

"No. You will be using your own landing strategy," Ozpin replied, and Jaune felt like the temperature had dropped even further.

Jaune watched as Yang, followed by Ruby, were launched off the cliff.

"So, what exactly is a landing strate-"

Jaune's sentence became a scream as he was launched into the air, flipping end over end in the sky as he sailed away from the cliff.

He continued to scream as he watched the cliff become more and more obscure, although it was less the cliff becoming more obscure and more sky-sky-cliff-ground-ground-sky-sky-cliff as he kept flipping uncontrollably.

 **[** _ **System Mind**_ **has triggered, nullifying emotion** ' _ **Terror'**_ **]**

Jaune felt a sense of calm invade his mind, and his breathing slowed, no longer hyperventilating.

He was still spinning, although he'd reached the highest point of his parabola, and was now plummeting towards the ground with considerable speed.

He needed some kind of landing strategy, that much was obvious, although what he could do wasn't popping into his head.

Although, why change what worked?

Jaune focused, drawing and directing Mana towards his feet, and stretching his arms up in an attempt to halt his spin, or at least control it somewhat.

It seemed to work, and he leveled off, no longer rotating in a dizzying tumble, but the more pressing problem was rapidly approaching, so he tilted back, plunging feet first towards the ground.

Impact was nearing with every second that passed, and Jaune closed his eyes, hoping for the best.

He touched down feet first, and like a lightning bolt Jaune felt the very air around him be pushed backwards, leaves sent scattering away and tree branches being pushed away.

Alongside the lightning bolt amount of force, with lightning comes thunder, and the cacophonous cracking of Jaune impacting echoed amongst the trees, sending the various wildlife into frantic retreat.

Jaune cracked his eyes open, and the first thing he noticed was a stunned looking Pyrrha, eyes wide as she stared at him, mouth slightly agape.

"Um, hi?"

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Impact (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now direct Mana into your feet, creating a shockwave upon impact. The higher the drop, the bigger the shockwave. Costs 100 MP per cast._ **]**

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Huntsman: First Steps (Part 3).**_ **]**

 **[Successfully survive and complete the Beacon Academy Initiation]**

 **[Reward: 2000 XP, 1 Skill Point, 1 Skill Book]**

* * *

"Gotta find Yang, gotta find Yang, gotta find- whoa!"

Ruby felt a rush of air pressure wash over her, and she looked around in surprise, unable to find an explanation to what she felt.

Then, slightly more explanation reached her as a wave of sound rolled its way throughout the trunks of the forest, deep and bassy.

"Wow, that sounded really cool!" Ruby heard a voice ask, and she turned to where the voice was.

What she was greeted with was the face of someone she hadn't met before.

Short, ginger-haired, and wearing a remarkable amount of pink were not the first things Ruby noticed. Instead, the first thing she noticed was the giant warhammer.

Two sets of eyes met each other, and a wide smile graced the hammer-maiden's face.

* * *

"Dust, these bushes!" Weiss exclaimed, batting at a particularly stubborn thorn that simply refused to exit her jacket.

Once she'd loosed nature's annoyance from her jacket she continued to make her way through the undergrowth, only to stop and look up as a wave of pressure passed over her.

The sound that followed was loud, and she heard a small yelp of pain, as a girl missed her footing in the trees above her, landing on the ground in front of her.

"Are you oka-" Weiss began, but froze, as amber eyes locked with hers.

"Damn it."

* * *

Yang ejected a spent shell from her gauntlets, the final of two Ursa having been the recipient of a powerful right hook.

A wave of pressure met her, blowing the spent shell of its original course and landing almost five feet to the left of where it should have.

The sound that followed perked Yang's interest, and so she began making her way towards it.

She was betting Ruby had something to do with it, after all, she'd started her first day at Beacon by exploding.

Her younger sister seemed to have a knack for attracting trouble. Just this week she'd fought a criminal who was in the process of robbing the shop she was in. Yang needed to keep a better eye on her, and what better way than being her partner.

Of course, when she entered a clearing where a teen dressed in green decapitated a giant snake by sticking its fang in its eye and hitting it really, really hard, Yang was hard pressed to want Ruby as her partner.

"Hey, ninja-dude. Looks like we're partners!"

* * *

"Do you think this is it?" Jaune asked his new partner, as the two stood in front of a dark hole lodged in the side of a cliff face.

The two began walking in, Jaune using what little _Aura Control_ he had to provide light, his hand glowing white.

"I'm not sure this is it…" Pyrrha began, and Jaune sighed.

"Let's just make sure, we'll just go another five feet."

The two proceeded to go another five feet, where they were met with a corner.

"Well, we might as well take a look," Jaune offered, stepping forward.

The two rounded the corner, and Jaune's glow was diminutive in comparison to what could only be described as the stinger to a giant scorpion.

Wait.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha exclaimed, as Jaune booked it past her, _Sprint_ active.

"RUN!" Jaune screamed as he ran, feet thumping the stone floor of the cave in rapid succession.

Pyrrha was quick to join him, heels somehow not impeding her speed as she kept pace.

"It's not the relic Pyrrha, it's not!" Jaune shouted as he ran, and as the two exited the cave they felt the ground shudder beneath them as the pursuing scorpion Grimm burst through the cave entrance, sending shards of rock into the air.

The two ran as fast as they could, covering ground the way only able to be done when a giant scorpion monster is giving chase.

They breached the treeline, and so too did the scorpion Grimm.

Ahead of Jaune and Pyrrha was the abandoned temple they'd originally been sent to find, alongside four other people, all of which turned to see the eldritch abomination that was pursuing the two.

It continued to approach and they continued to run, only altering their heading as a rain of jet-black feathers twice the size of Jaune impacted the ground ahead of them, and two figures impacting alongside them, although closer to the temple and not impaled by feathers.

"Some help would be appreciated!" Jaune cried out, and the blond teen noticed Weiss as one of the first to respond, shooting forwards with haste, planting her rapier blade into the dirt, a plume of ice erupting from the point and encasing one of the pincers.

"Thanks, Weiss," Jaune offered, his breathless thank-you being accepted with a sigh.

"So, what do we do now?" Someone asked, Jaune didn't know who, but he did know who answered.

"Well, there's no sense in waiting around. Our objective is right in front of us," Weiss said, and Ruby took the proverbial torch.

"She's right. Our mission is to grab a relic and make it back to the cliffs, there's no point in fighting these things," She said, and Jaune found himself nodding in agreement, alongside many of the others.

"Run and live. That's a plan I can get behind. We'd better do it quick though, that bird is coming back around," Jaune said, as he looked towards the sky.

As if to confirm that suspicion a loud 'caw' sound echoed across the clearing.

Both Ruby and Jaune walked over to the relics, a variety of gold and black chess pieces, and each took one. Ruby took a rook, whilst Jaune took a knight, both gold.

The two shared a small smile before walking back to the rest of the assembled Hunters-in-training, only to have what seemed like a happy moment snap back into morbid reality as the creepy giant scorpion chittered, ice cracking as it struck at it.

"Time we left!" Said someone Jaune hadn't met, and he agreed with the sentiment, joining the pack as they all began to run towards the cliffs.

Oh, and what a run it was going to be, as they heard ice shatter behind them.

"Not again!"

* * *

It was a straight shot to the cliffs, but they had to first navigate the ruined structure that was just barely supporting itself, the base of it so far down into the gorge that it wasn't even visible amongst the thick fog.

Adding to that, the giant scorpion was still hot on their heels, and the giant bird was coming around.

As Jaune ran he threw a glance over his shoulder, triggering _Observe_ as he looked.

 **[Elder Deathstalker]**

 **[Grimm, Level 5]**

 **[Health: Minorly Injured]**

 **[Elder Nevermore]**

 **[Grimm, Level 5]**

That was bad, really really bad. Jaune had never even seen Elder Grimm before, although now he guessed he had.

"Incoming!" Jaune cried out as the Elder Nevermore flapped its wings, a blast of air and razor sharp feathers being hurtled towards them.

Those with shields blocked the impacts with grunts, and those without used increased mobility to dodge them, but that seemed to matter little to the Elder Nevermore, swooping over the top of them and deciding it liked hovering in front of them in an attempt to cut them off.

"We need to keep moving!" Ruby called out.

The boy in green added his voice to the air. "Nora, cover us!"

The girl with the hammer, Nora, leaped out of cover as the group began to run, opening fire with what once was a hammer and was now a grenade launcher.

If Jaune wasn't in a life-or-death situation, he would've been impressed, but as it was he had more pressing things to worry about.

The Nevermore screeched as it felt explosions impact across its body, and Jaune watched as Ruby leaped close to Nora, grabbing her around the waist and sprinting away as the Deathstalker's pincer impacted the ground right where she had been standing.

"Onto the ruins!" Someone called out, and Jaune found himself in agreement, taking the rear alongside his partner as they crossed an ancient stone bridge, just wide enough for the Deathstalker to fit on.

Of course, the Nevermore decided it enjoyed keeping them cut off, and repositioned to be in front of them once more, another barrage of sharp avian projectiles being hurtled their way.

One such feather struck the centerpoint of the stonework, taking a chunk of it out and separating the group into two.

Pyrrha, Blake, Weiss and Jaune faced off against a rampant Deathstalker, as Ruby, Yang, Nora and the as yet unnamed boy in green faced a rather annoyed Nevermore.

Jaune and Pyrrha took the frontlines, shields clanging as the Deathstalker struck with pincers, and Jaune rolled backwards as the stinger impacted the ground in front of him, narrowly missing the teen.

Blake and Weiss provided ranged support from behind, bullets and blue glowing projectiles impacting against the bony exoskeleton of the chittering Grimm.

The stinger came down again, this time at Pyrrha, and she sidestepped it, and Jaune capitalised on the opening, a horizontal slash impacting against the dense muscle that held it in place, digging in deep.

The Deathstalker screamed in pain, and Jaune felt his side take a severe hit, launching him back towards Blake and Weiss in a heap.

He was already climbing up, using the time it took to clamber back to his feet to come up with something, anything, any kind of plan.

"Blake, Weiss, how high can you get me above the Deathstalker?" Jaune asked, looking back at the two girls.

They didn't spend any time or energy explaining, nor did he, and they quickly grabbed him.

"Pyrrha, stinger!" Jaune shouted as a black glyph appeared beneath the three of them, and as Pyrrha noticed what Jaune was getting at, he roared, _Battle Cry_ triggering as Weiss activated her glyph, launching her, Jaune and Blake into the air, where the two girls gave all they could in shoving him upwards.

Pyrrha, emboldened by the roar Jaune had given, flipped backwards and threw her shield, the round metal plate spinning through the air and severing the skewed muscle that held the stinger in place, and Jaune watched from above the Deathstalker.

Jaune plunged towards the Grimm, and activated _Mana Impact_ , glowing arcane energy pooling around his feet as he struck feet first atop the stinger that was balanced precariously atop the exoskeleton.

The impact sent a shudder through all that were nearby, as all the Mana Jaune put into it was delivered through a powerful blow, detonating the Deathstalker from the inside out.

Jaune surfaced from the corpse, brushing viscera from his face and giving a hasty thumbs up to the rest of the assembled students, before noticing Ruby decapitate the Nevermore atop the cliff.

How she'd done that was completely beyond him, but he liked to think it had been as cool as the result looked.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 5280 XP!]**

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 4!]**

 **[+5 Skill Points!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x2]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Weapon Proficiency: One-Handed Melee**_ **has reached level 6!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x2]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Shield**_ **has reached level 6!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x4]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Sprint**_ **has reached level 5!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Sprint**_ **has updated!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Observe**_ **has reached level 4!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x3]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Dodge**_ **has reached level 6!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Dodge**_ **has updated!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x3]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Battle Cry**_ **has reached level 5!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Battle Cry**_ **has updated!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[x4]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Mana Impact**_ **has reached level 5!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Mana Impact**_ **has updated!]**

 **[A title has ranked up!]**

 **[Title:** _ **Huntsman**_ **has reached the rank of: Novice!]**

 **[Next Title Milestone: Kill 25 Beowolves!]**

 **[Ding!]**

 **[Due to intense physical and mental stress in the face of difficult challenge, you've gained 1 point in all stats!]**

 **[Elder Deathstalker Chitin]**

 **[Chitin from an Elder Deathstalker, this chitin is strong and hardened, difficult to pierce, this rare crafting component sells well.]**

That… Jaune was going to read that later.

First, he had a cliff face to climb.

* * *

"Cardin Winchester, Russel Thrush, Dove Bronzewing, Sky Lark. The four of you took the black bishop pieces, and will form Team Cardinal, lead by Cardin Winchester," Ozpin said, addressing the assembled audience as much as the newly formed team themselves.

The four walked off the stage and joined the crowd of students.

Ozpin looked down to his scroll, and began to read out names once again.

"Ruby Rose, Lie Ren, Yang Xiao Long, Nora Valkyrie. The four of you took the gold rook pieces, and will form Team Rain, lead by Ruby Rose," Ozpin spoke, and the shocked look that Ruby bore on her face as she stood in front of the crowd was soon covered as her older sister swallowed her in a tight hug.

"Jaune Arc, Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna, Pyrrha Nikos. The four of you took the gold knight pieces, and will form Team Auburn, lead by Jaune Arc," Ozpin addressed, and as he finished he directed a look at Jaune that the boy would be pressed to forget.

Even as Pyrrha thumped him on the shoulder, doing enough damage to actually dip his HP, seeing as his aura wasn't active, he still shivered at the look the headmaster was giving him.

Ozpin did not like Jaune, and Jaune could not figure out why.

He stepped down from the stage and rejoined the crowd of students, his new team in tow, noting as another notification appeared.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Huntsman: First Steps (Part 3).**_ **]**

 **[Successfully survive and complete the Beacon Academy Initiation]**

 **[Reward: 2000 XP, 1 Skill Point, 1 Skill Book (In Inventory)]**

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 5!]**

 **[+5 Skill Points]**

Jaune decided to shelve those notifications for further viewing, and so they joined the minimized notification windows from the Initiation encounter.

The assembly finished quickly, but Jaune barely noticed, walking out of the hall with a dazed expression that was not matched by his teammates.

Blake and Weiss both had surly expressions, although for remarkably different reasons, and Pyrrha was wearing a polite smile.

"Hey, Team AWBN!" A voice called out, snapping Jaune out of his reverie as he looked towards Ruby and the rest of team RRYN. "You guys wanna come with so we can check out our dorms together?"

Jaune didn't answer for a moment, and as he was about to he heard a 'hmph'.

Jaune frowned, turning to Weiss. He opened his mouth, and promptly closed it, turning back to Ruby. "Sure thing, Ruby. Let's go."

The eight students began walking towards the dorms, but Jaune was the last of the eight, staring into the sky as the chills failed to leave his body.

* * *

Jaune and the rest of his new team were settling in to their dorm, just across the hall from the far noisier Team RRYN.

Jaune acted as he was supposed to and let the girls all shower before he did, but once he was able to enter the bathroom he was finally able to release the stress he'd been holding since the assembly.

He turned the taps, warm water pouring out of the showerhead, and stepped out of his clothes, relishing in the warmth as he entered the shower.

Once typical shower related things were taken care of, Jaune brought up the minimized notifications of the day's work, eyes widening slightly as he noticed a few things he hadn't seen before.

He'd gained two levels in one day, but considering his day he thought that was fair.

A lot of skills had leveled up, too, and multiple times per skill was more common than not. That was great, but it wasn't the most important part.

According to his notifications, some of skills had updated. What that meant Jaune didn't know, so he navigated to his skills window and brought up _Sprint_.

 **[** _ **Sprint (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now sprint better than ever before! Sprinting costs_ _4 SP/s_ _, and you can sprint up to half-AGI m/s._ _ **Level 5; XP 1200/1600.**_ **]**

So, _Sprint_ cost 1 SP/s less than before. That was good, he could sprint for much longer now, and that was just one of the skills that had updated.

He brought up the rest of the skills that had changed, interested in seeing what was different.

 **[** _ **Dodge (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now evade attacks with precision and skill. Consumes_ _9 SP_ _per dodge._ _ **Level 6; XP 222/3200.**_ **]**

 **[** _ **Battle Cry (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can perform a battle cry, which increases morale in all friendlies, decreases morale in all hostiles, and allows you to dip into the negative for SP, MP and AP, at the cost of HP and exhaustion._ _Damage taken from exceeding limit is reduced by 10%_ _._ _ **Level 5; XP 1280/1600.**_ **]**

 **[** _ **Mana Impact (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now direct Mana into your feet, creating a shockwave upon impact. The higher the drop, the bigger the shockwave. Costs_ _99 MP_ _per cast._ _ **Level 5; XP 940/1600.**_ **]**

Now those were nice benefits.

Jaune checked the next thing in his list, before opening up the title window and checking his title.

 **[Title]**

 **[Huntsman Novice:** _As a Huntsman Novice, you gain +15% XP from all Grimm kills._ _ **Next Rank: Huntsman Amateur (0/25 Beowolves killed)**_ **]**

So he got even more XP from killing Grimm now, that was good.

Next on the list of notifications was a single point to all his stats, which was excellent.

Second last was the item he'd picked up from the Deathstalker, black and white chitin with small red streaks, which he decided keeping in his inventory would be a lot better for all involved.

Last but not least was the quest completion he'd minimized to look at later, which just so happened to be now.

An extra skill point was nice, but Jaune was much more interested in the skill book he'd been awarded. Once again checking his inventory, he tapped on the skill book to bring up details on it.

 **[Skill Book]**

 **[Summoning Ritual]**

 **[Consume: Yes/No]**

Summoning Ritual? That wasn't anything Jaune had heard of before, but it certainly perked his interest, so clicked yes.

 **[LOCKED]**

 **[Stat Requirement: INT 20, WIS 20]**

Jaune sighed. He couldn't learn it, but at least he knew that some skills were locked behind stat requirements.

Wait.

Jaune frantically brought up his stats, and noticed he had skill points to spend. He spent all of about half a second considering the consequences before pressing the tip of his finger against the plus next to INT, and again against the plus next to WIS.

He then pressed the yes button on the skill book, consuming it with haste.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Summoning Ritual (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can conduct a ritual that can allow you to summon something. What is summoned by the ritual is dependent on materials used._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Summoning (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can bind something you have summoned using the summoning ritual, allowing you to use this skill to summon at will. Summoning costs 100 MP to summon, and maintaining a summon costs 50 MP/min._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/100.**_ **]**

Jaune turned off the shower and began towelling himself off, reading his two new skills to himself.

 _Summoning Ritual_ appeared to be the more important of the two, but that didn't mean that _Summoning_ wasn't as useful.

He wasn't sure what he could use as materials for summoning, but his mind, without his willing it, suggested Dust.

Well, it was good news that one of his teammates had something to do with Dust. Maybe Weiss knew a little about it, and would be willing to share that knowledge.

He'd just have to ask her at some point.

As for now, though, Jaune was content to simply sleep, and as he quietly stepped out of the bathroom he noticed that the other three members of AWBN were already unconscious, in various sleeping positions.

Jaune didn't even have the energy to care about what those positions were, however, as he clambered into the only bed left, which he assumed was the one that hadn't been claimed.

As correct as he was on the assumption, he didn't have the time or energy to congratulate himself, as he drifted off into unconsciousness.

And to think, tomorrow was the first day of classes.

* * *

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Novice]**

 **[Level: 5]**

 **[XP: 1825/5000]**

 **[HP: 190/190 (0.95/s)]**

 **[SP: 190/190 (3.8/s)]**

 **[MP: 200/200 (2/s)]**

 **[AP: 1520/1520 (0.38/s)]**

 **[STR: 18]**

 **[END: 19]**

 **[AGI: 13]**

 **[INT: 20]**

 **[WIS: 20]**

 **[CHA: 12]**

 **[LCK: 11]**

 **[Skill Points: 10]**

 **[Lien: 115]**

* * *

 **Alright, now that the chapter is all said and done, there is something very critical I need to get out of the way. The XP system is going to be completely revamped.**

 **Before, a level 1 Beowolf was worth 25 XP, a level 2 Beowolf was worth 50 XP, and a level 3 Beowolf was worth 100 XP. That's all well and good, and balanced well.**

 **Or at least it was for the early chapters. I designed and scripted an XP calculator to make my job easier when calculating XP gain from encounters, and quickly noticed a problem. Using the same exponential XP gain formula, a level 25 Beowolf was worth 419,430,400 XP. That's a pretty big difference to 25 XP.**

 **Were Jaune to kill that at level 25, he'd be shot up to something like level 100+, easily.**

 **For those interested, the maths I was using was ({Beowolf XP at Level 1} *2^{Beowolf Level}/2), which worked. I am by no means a math person, I in fact failed every single math class I had in high school, and scraped by in the mandatory classes as a part of University, so you can imagine why I didn't notice why this wasn't thought through.**

 **I think I've got something that works far better now, at least, and as such all my scripts and other things are adjusted to suit the new formula, it's just a matter of figuring out a way to implement that into the story and having it flow properly. For those interested, it's now ({Beowolf XP at Level 1}*{Beowolf Level}^2), and a different player/skill leveling formula of (12*{Player/Skill Level}^3). It makes the balance much better, and I didn't even have to figure out how to graph it using coefficients! (I don't think I've stressed how bad I am at maths yet.)**

 **It will, unfortunately, be resetting all skill XP, but not skill levels. Don't worry, this won't affect the story too much, in fact it makes the starting progression slightly faster, and the end progression slightly slower, like an actual RPG should. Having to research game design theory for writing is certainly interesting though. Maybe one day I'll design a game based on this story. Who knows. Don't get you hopes up.**

 **Anyway, enough about that, onto reviews!**

 **someUntel: Offensive Mana Orbitals sounds pretty damn neat. I have a list of potential skills sitting in that godforsaken spreadsheet, and I'll add it to said list!**

 **infadinityfollower: I appreciate the fact that you think I've nailed V1 Jaune, because I always worry about how I'm characterizing each character. Sometimes it can be so difficult to convey what you need to say in a way that suits the character. As for the System's percieved personality, we're starting to see a few flaws in it, and that may just be something to focus on in the future :P.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: You, without a doubt, lead a far more interesting life than I do, that's for damn sure. Laser sheaths are venturing into the sci-fi existance that I thrive for, and so it shall be listed as potentially. When I get around to setting up loot charts with randomized loot, a laser sheath will definitely be included as one such reward.**

 **Slenderbrine: Just for the record, Jaune did check it out, when he read what it said. There isn't actually any more details on that, not without dedicating entire chapters to what is just a System-based explanation for his canon aura levels.**

 **Mecharic: Lo, the colour-names for teams took me so long I had to google a spreadsheet someone made that automatically sorted every single possible team name. Picking from a list of predetermined combinations is easier than making all the combinations myself, and thus we end up with AWBN and RRYN. Not too bad, if I do say so myself.**

 **Alvelvnor: As for the revolver, that's pretty cool, and the idea of inscribing bullets with spells reminds me of 'The Irregular at Magic Highschool', or whatever the proper translation is. When I read this review the first time, when I wasn't writing this response, I quickly searched it, and gave it a quick read through. It's, and I don't mean any offense to the writer or any fans, but it's pretty hard to read. Bad grammar, bad formatting and an overall decent plot that wasn't executed all that well. If it were spell-checked, grammar-checked and formatted to be even somewhat more readable I'd be inclined to actually give it a proper shot.**

 **SentinalSlice: I'm glad I make the characters seem more alive to you, that means I'm nailing what I was once terrible at. Seriously, some of my earliest writing is technically as good, but characterized so damn poorly. Technically his practicing with Aura is using the skill, but I have a more fluid definition of skills. Less RPG this does this, and more this can do this, if you want it to. Not taking the rules you set too seriously is a great way to write.**

 **Well, that's about it for respondable reviews this chapter! Thanks to all of you who reviewed, even if I didn't answer I still read it and appreciated it!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	7. A Glyph of Ice and Fire

**Well, I've started a full degree in university, doing a Bachelor of Arts in Creative Writing, which may or may not explain a lot. I'm now far busier than ever, so if I miss a chapter it'll be the week after, unless I find enough free time to get it done. Other than the XP System has changed, and works now.**

 **Hooray.**

* * *

Jaune opened his eyes to a swarm of floating blue notifications.

 **[The System has experienced a catastrophic error in formulaic processing!]**

 **[Reverting to predetermined subroutines!]**

 **[Re-initializing Default Protocol!]**

 **[ERROR: Default Protocol not found. Initializing Alternate Protocol!]**

 **[...]**

 **[...]**

 **[...]**

 **[Alternate Protocol Initialized!]**

 **[Experience System Altered!]**

 **[The System suggests checking all XP based sequences!]**

 **[XP now unified. Skill XP no longer exists!]**

 **[XP Formula altered. XP Gain Formula altered. XP Required altered!]**

Well, Jaune didn't really know how to react to that. He checked the time, noting it was pretty early in the morning, and decided that now was a better time than never to check what had changed, especially considering how significant the System made it out to be.

Catastrophic didn't sound so good.

Jaune opened his menu and selected his stats menu, only to have a notification appear above the screen.

 **[Player XP has been reset due to an error!]**

 **[Skill XP has been reset due to an error!]**

Oh. _Oh._ That wasn't good. In fact, that was so far beyond good on the scale of good to bad it was reaching bad, clawing past it and almost touching really bad.

In other words, it wasn't good at all.

Jaune dismissed the notification, and realised he might've been overreacting.

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Novice]**

 **[Level: 5]**

 **[XP: 0/1500]**

 **[HP: 190/190 (0.95/s)]**

 **[SP: 190/190 (3.8/s)]**

 **[MP: 200/200 (2/s)]**

 **[AP: 1520/1520 (0.38/s)]**

 **[STR: 18]**

 **[END: 19]**

 **[AGI: 13]**

 **[INT: 20]**

 **[WIS: 20]**

 **[CHA: 12]**

 **[LCK: 11]**

 **[Skill Points: 10]**

 **[Lien: 115]**

Okay, so the good news was nothing but his XP had been reset, although now that he thought of that why would anything else be affected?

It was too early in the morning for thinking.

He didn't even want to look at his skills, if it meant reading through each and every one to see a couple random numbers.

Maybe it was better off that he just ran with it, instead of delving deep into whatever metaphysical programming went into making the System working. That way led madness, and if he was being perfectly straight with himself he wasn't ready to go insane just yet. He'd give it at least a week or so of being a team leader before he resolved himself to crazy-town.

Speaking of being team leader, he'd best wake up his team lest they all be late, and then he'd get blamed, and then Professor Goodwitch would most probably get angry with him, and then he'd be taken to see the headmaster, and then Headmaster Ozpin would murder him, bring him back to life, murder him again, and just generally delight in dealing death and pain to him.

Jaune might've been exaggerating slightly, but he maintained that it was only slightly, and that Ozpin really didn't like him so it wasn't too far to assume the man might take any anger out on him.

Speaking of taking anger out, Jaune could feel a pair of eyes boring through the back of his head. If looks could kill, and all that.

He stood from his bed and turned, noting the three sleeping figures of his new team.

His partner, Pyrrha, was the deepest sleeper, wrapped in the bedcovers like they were the only things important to her in life.

Blake was at the far end of the room, opposite Jaune, and the raven-haired girl was sleeping lightly, but still wearing the ribbon. That was a little odd.

Weiss was the only one who wasn't asleep, not for lack of pretending to be. It was clear to Jaune, the way her eyelids flickered and the way she breathed in and out far faster than anyone relaxed would.

He glanced at the clock that hovered in his field of view once more, before deciding his first act as team leader would be to make his team hate him.

"Alright, Team AWBN! Wake up, we've got classes soon!" Jaune called out, noting that Weiss opened her eyes almost instantly.

Blake and Pyrrha were less excited, the former groaning as she awoke and the latter snuggling deeper into her bed.

"We've got classes at nine, guys. It's eight. That's an hour for showering, and unpacking, and all that, so we should probably get up," Jaune said, looking over his team.

Weiss was out of the bed and in the bathroom before Jaune could blink, door slamming shut behind her.

Well, that was one of three taken care of.

"Guys?"

There was no response.

It was going to be a long morning for the new team leader.

* * *

Jaune didn't think it was possible to put a room to sleep with mere words, but at the front of the class stood proof that that was in fact not true even slightly.

Professor Port stood as portly as his name implied, bearing a mustache larger than any thought possible.

Professor Port was in the process of talking, but Jaune, alongside almost every other student, had tuned him out, the hearty booming voice at odds with the sheer boredom each word carried, like a payload in a missile.

"There I was, with only a shovel, five pounds of butter and my wit to save me from the horde of Boarbatusks that had me surrounded, but I wasn't about to give up, ho ho!"

Jaune tried, he really did, but he'd suffered less agony when he'd faced that Alpha Beowolf. He didn't want to listen, he really didn't, but there was something that was forcing him to, a kind of morbid curiosity that had him tune back in once more.

"I stood victorious, clothes torn and coated head to toe in a glorious sheen thanks to the butter, my bulging-"

Jaune blanched, tuning out once more. Morbid curiosity or not, any more and he was going to jump out the window.

Sure, it wouldn't make a very good impression for his first day of Beacon, but as he looked around he figured he wasn't the only one who wanted to leave through any means possible.

Ruby was busy doodling in her notebook, her partner Nora laughing at the silly drawing she'd sketched of Port. Beside Nora sat Ren, the monk-like boy seeming like he was listening, but under closer inspection it was revealed he was in fact asleep with his eyes open, something Jaune wished he could do.

Yang was on the other side of her sister, the girl not even bothering to disguise her disdain for the class, head on the desk and occasional snores escaping her mouth.

Jaune looked to his own team. Blake was reading a book, which from first glance was something that was definitely not class material. He recognized it as a book one of his sisters read, and whilst his sister had been very vocal about it being 'romance', Jaune wasn't that dumb.

Pyrrha was trying in vain to pay attention, her attention flitting back and forth between her notebook and what Port was saying, the girl occasionally jotting something down and then promptly scratching it out, shaking her head.

Weiss was the only one actively participating in the lesson, her notebook a flurry of ink and scrawled yet neat handwriting as she attempted to record word-for-word the story Port was telling, and from the look of growing consternation on her face she was slowly but surely becoming more and more disillusioned in Port's teaching ability.

And yet, Jaune watched as Weiss raised her arm, answering a question Jaune didn't even realise Port had asked.

"I can, Professor!" Weiss called out, and that seemed to please the man.

"Ah, a student after my own heart! Well, down you come, face the beast!" Port said with a hearty laugh, gesturing for Weiss to retrieve her equipment.

"Beast?" Jaune asked in a whisper, leaning over to his partner.

"A Boarbatusk, if I am correct. A common theme with… whatever it was the professor was talking about," Pyrrha replied, paling as she recalled the tale.

"Ah…" Jaune uttered in understanding. He supposed he should probably be a supportive team leader, and as such decided to give a cheer to give Weiss confidence.

"You can do it Weiss!" Jaune shouted out, Ruby echoing her enthusiasm in a show of joint-team solidarity.

Weiss turned her head and _glared_ at Jaune, and he shrunk into his seat somewhat, regretting his attempts at being a good team leader.

Weiss drew her weapon, the rapier glistening, revealing exactly how much care she put into it. She stepped forward, settling into a ready position, and Port opened a cage Jaune had somehow not noticed until now, the eerie glowing red eyes suddenly finding home on the freshly revealed head of a Boarbatusk.

Jaune observed the Boarbatusk, interested in both gaining some XP for his newly reset _Observe_.

 **[Boarbatusk]**

 **[Grimm, Level 2]**

Death came swift for the weak Boarbatusk, the porcine Grimm quickly suffering a deep stab to the underbelly, killing it with ease, but the creature of darkness had not been bested by an untouched rapier-wielder, Weiss having suffered a blow due to a lapse in concentration when Jaune had told her of the Boarbatusk's weak spot.

He felt a little guilty about that.

As Weiss paced evenly back to her seat, Jaune leaned over to speak to her.

"Hey, sorry about distracting you, that was my bad," He apologised, scratching the back of his head.

"Hmph," Weiss uttered, and Jaune leaned back, a sigh escaping his lips.

This wasn't going great, but it had only been a day. Maybe she just needed time to get used to her surroundings.

He certainly did.

Less than a minute later the bell rang, and both Team AWBN and RRYN stood as fast as their sleeping teammates would allow, the two teams quickly making there way out of the class and to the cafeteria to retrieve some much needed sustenance in the form of lunch.

As was to be expected, the cafeteria was full, students of varying years flowing in and out as they either claimed tables or took their food elsewhere.

AWBN and RRYN quickly claimed one of the few tables left, Jaune leaving them to get settled as he went to fetch something to eat.

Jaune was happy to eat whatever he could get his hands on, used to eating what his sisters wanted at that point in time, but when he found he had the luxury of choice he caved quickly under the pressure of decision making, grabbing what he was most used to.

As it turned out, this choice was seemingly popular, as Nora practically took the remaining pancakes, devouring them with such haste that Jaune felt like he was finally understanding that his father was not the only one in existence with such devout fervour towards the typically breakfast food.

As Jaune sat down, he realised he'd made quite a serious blunder.

"Hey, has anyone seen Weiss?" Jaune asked, a concerned expression on his face as he scanned the cafeteria.

Most of AWBN and all of RRYN shook their heads, except Blake.

"She stayed behind to talk with Professor Port. I don't know what about," Blake said, the most words she'd said all day.

Jaune just nodded, beginning to eat his pancakes. Whatever Weiss had to speak with the professor about, he was sure it was important.

* * *

"Professor, I just don't understand. What is it that he has that I don't?"

Professor Port looked at his student, patience on his face.

Weiss was pacing back and forth, thoughts whistling through her mind a mile a minute.

"Ms Schnee, I don't quite think I get what you are trying to say."

Weiss's head snapped sideways, her eyes suddenly glaring into the professor's.

"I should've been made the leader of Team AWBN!" Weiss exclaimed.

Port thought for a second, considering his response very carefully as to not offend the student that stood before him.

"That's preposterous!" Port began, only to have Weiss up and walk away.

"Ah, Ms Schnee?" Professor Port called out to the retreating figure.

She ignored him.

"I did not finish, Ms Schnee!" Port called once more.

She ignored him once more.

Weiss exited the classroom, and Port sat back into his chair with a sigh.

"That poor boy."

* * *

"Arc!"

Jaune perked his head up from his seat, as did the rest of AWBN and RRYN as they heard the shout.

"Prove to me you should be the leader of AWBN!" Weiss exclaimed.

Jaune scratched the back of his head. "Uh…"

"I challenge you to a fight, Arc! The winner becomes the leader of Team AWBN!" Weiss issued.

Jaune paled. "Do I have to accept?" Jaune asked.

"Yes!" Weiss practically screeched.

Jaune scratched the back of his head once again. "It's just that it seems like a lose-lose for me, that's all."

"Ugh, fine. If you win, I'll become the good little teammate like the rest of AWBN," Weiss replied, before glaring at him.

In the corner of his eye Jaune noted as Pyrrha frowned slightly, and Blake made to stand up. At least those two were content with his insofar somewhat lacking leadership.

Jaune didn't really have much of a choice. "Fine."

"Come then," Weiss said, turning on her heel and leaving the cafeteria. Jaune followed, and so did the rest of AWBN and RRYN, close on his heels.

They arrived at an empty sparring hall, Weiss already standing at one side, her rapier in one hand.

"Oh, let me just go get-" Jaune began, only to see Crocea Mors in Ruby's hands, blade in sheath.

"Go get her Jaune!" Ruby said enthusiastically.

Jaune took his weapon with a thanks, before turning with a sigh to face Weiss.

Weiss settled into a ready pose, one Jaune recognized from earlier.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Leading a Team**_ **]**

 **[Defeat Weiss Schnee in single combat, and prove that you are a capable leader!]**

 **[Reward: 2000 XP]**

Pyrrha took it upon herself to regulate the match. "Begin!"

Weiss shot forward with acceleration that rivaled Ruby, and Jaune barely managed to deploy his shield as her rapier impacted, the point of the blade skittering to the side and causing the heiress to veer off target, but to her credit she recovered well, rotating and preparing for a second attack.

Jaune turned about face, shield raised, and he drew his sword, Crocea Mors scraping slightly against the inside of the sheath part of the shield.

He held it easily in one hand, and his mind began flitting through possibilities.

He was locked in this fight, there was no way out aside from winning or losing, and he wasn't a particularly big fan of losing, considering the consequences.

Weiss had only seen his _Mana Impact_ skill, and no-one aside from possibly Blake had seen any of his other skills, and Blake would've only seen them if she had bothered to pay attention to his acceptance exam.

As far as Weiss knew, she only had to contend with his physical prowess and prevent him from getting into the air, and she didn't know the extent of his physical combat capabilities.

He snapped out of thinking just in time to raise his shield to deflect another strike, before parrying a stab with his blade.

He needed to figure out how she liked to fight so that he could counter it.

Weiss stabbed again, and Jaune took it with his shield, but the expected impact didn't come, the point of the rapier being drawn backwards to avoid clanging off the plate of metal.

She fought with a style he didn't recognize, although the fact he didn't recognize it shouldn't have been a surprise seeing as Jaune didn't actually know any fighting styles. That was probably something Jaune should learn, but right now he was a little preoccupied as another stab was waved to the side by Jaune's blade.

He needed to get up close and personal, rush her and preferably pin her down. Her style seemed to rely on rapid stabs and agility, so trapping her and hitting hard were the best options for him. _Shield Bash_ was going to get some serious use.

Jaune stepped forward as she stabbed at him, the blade sparking as it met his shield, and she stepped back a pace, stance still held with near perfection.

He kept up his momentum, however, and Weiss felt herself on the back foot as he continued to deflect her strikes. She needed to get passed his damned near-impenetrable defense.

She concentrated, and a glyph appeared beneath her, launching her up onto another.

Jaune watched as the glyph she landed on angled towards him and launched her within the same moment, and he raised his shield in anticipation as she impacted heels first against the metal plate, sending him back onto one knee from the force. A single flip had Weiss back on the ground, blade already flickering out to deprive him of some Aura, but he wasn't done yet, rolling backwards and back up onto one knee, his shield serving as an anchorage point to keep him steady.

Weiss frowned, and paced back, blade still pointed forward.

Jaune rose from one knee and faced her down. His defense wasn't doing anything, and it was still a stalemate. Neither had taken a blow, and Jaune hadn't even attempted an attack yet.

He needed to play this a little more offensively.

He spun his sword in his hand once, loosening his wrist, before darting forwards, sword above his head in what could only be called a charge.

Weiss quickly created a glyph beneath her as Jaune closed the distance between the two, but he wasn't quite doing what she thought he was doing.

He struck, slashing the air, and Weiss only had a split-second to wonder what he was doing before she had to dodge the beam of energy that was sent her way, carving a chunk of tile where it impacted next to her after her glyph had launched her sideways.

Jaune, however, had not stopped his charge, and as his shield impacted against her blade, which she'd thrown up in a hasty block, he kept up the charge, pinning her to the wall behind his shield.

Now, with Weiss pinned, Jaune gave her only a split second to react as he released the pin, drawing his shield close to his body.

Weiss tried to react, she did, but Jaune slammed the shield back into place, knocking the breath out of her.

Aura or no, it didn't stop physics.

Jaune tried a second time but Weiss was ready, slipping to the side, into the path of Crocea Mors as it stabbed at her shoulder, her Aura flaring as it blocked the metal.

Weiss had broken the pin, but it had cost her dearly. Two solid hits like that had cost her a little over a third of her Aura, and Jaune knew it, as his eyes quickly glanced up to the overhead screen, where both their Aura levels were displayed.

It wasn't numerical, of course, only the System seemed capable of formulaically understanding Aura on such a level, but it was enough to determine that Jaune was currently winning.

It appeared Weiss knew it too, her eyes revealing an enraged personality that Jaune was a little nervous of.

Weiss had been underestimating him, that much was clear, and now that he'd proven that he could in fact win, she was no longer holding back.

If anything, Jaune was actually excited. That feeling seemed to exist in his every move, even when Weiss hit him harder than a freight train.

He didn't think someone so small could hit so hard, but then again he'd seen what Nora wielded, so maybe that wasn't true, but as Weiss prepared another Glyph to do the same thing a second time, Jaune decided that maybe it was time to start throwing some curveballs.

Crocea Mors slid into the top of the shield, having learned from last time, and his hand outstretched. A single _Mana Bolt_ shot off the end of his fingertips, arcane energy crackling as it flew down range and impacted against Weiss as she charged forwards, her forward momentum not giving her the option to dodge.

The _Mana Bolt_ had done enough to slow her down, and as she slid to a stop Jaune stepped forwards and unleashed another _Mana Slash_ , the arcane line that flew from his blade impacting against her rapier, the mana dispersing and sending Weiss stumbling backwards.

If Weiss had been angry before, she was positively inconsolably _pissed_ now, as she gave up any and all restraint, pointing the rapier at him and screeching in rage.

Jaune hefted his shield and blocked as small projectiles of energy smashed against his shield over and over again, whittling away at his Aura as they impacted.

His Aura was still green, but he didn't have any time to check his meters as Weiss felt that she wasn't dealing enough pain.

A click sounded, and Jaune peered over his shield to see the rapier's center point spinning.

He only had a second to prepare, and so he did what he could, _Observe_ being used on the weapon.

 **[Myrtenaster]**

 **[Multi-Action Dust Rapier]**

 **[Myrtenaster is a custom-made rapier that incorporates elements of a revolver into the design. It is designed both as a powerful melee weapon and as a Dust-caster, and is accentuated by the sheer variety of Dust it carries.]**

 **[+ 5 WIS]**

Jaune dodged sideways, rolling out of the way as a stream of fire sprung to life in his direction, emanating from Myrtenaster, Weiss having planted the tip of the blade into the ground.

A blast of ice blocked of his passage to the left, and Jaune was pinned, with only two directions to go, either away from the incensed heiress, or towards her.

The heat from the flames was already starting to melt the ice, but Jaune didn't have the time nor the wherewithal to use that to his advantage, and so he really only had one choice.

He broke into a sprint, shield in front of him as he once again charged Weiss.

She had been expecting it, and she pointed Myrtenaster at him once more, the glowing blue projectiles shooting out once more.

He closed the distance even as he felt the pinpricks of energy impact his flaring Aura.

When he was close enough, he closed his eyes, unleashing an Aura-charged _Jump_.

Suddenly, Jaune was fifty feet in the air, a roar escaping his lips as he activated _Battle Cry_.

Weiss paled as she realised his plan of attack, but there wasn't much she could do to prevent it from happening as Jaune reached the tip of his jump, plunging feet first towards the heiress, his shoes glowing as he poured Mana into them.

It was going to hurt both of them, Jaune knew, and he was going to be exhausted afterwards, but the impact was too satisfying to deny, feet impacting with a loud boom against…

A black glyph. Jaune frowned, and watched as a straining Weiss kept her rapier pointed at it, willing her Aura to prevent it from cracking, although it seemed to be to no avail as Jaune felt it break beneath him.

Unlike Weiss, Jaune was still capable of fighting, and as her arm slumped down, rapier dangling loosely, Jaune landed atop her, shield first, driving the girl to the ground and leaving her trapped beneath his own body weight.

A second passed, silent amongst the sparring hall, before a voice called out.

"End of match! Weiss's Aura is in the red! Jaune wins!"

Jaune let out a small laugh, slumping backwards and releasing the pin, landing on his rear as he panted.

He leaned back and checked his meters.

 **[Jaune Arc|Level 5]**

 **[XP: 0/1500]**

 **[HP: 145/171 (0.855/s)]**

 **[SP: 131/171 (3.42/s)]**

 **[MP: 0/180 (1.8/s)]**

 **[AP: 1350/1368 (0.342/s)]**

 **[Exhausted I]**

Well, he was exhausted, which he'd guessed. _Battle Cry_ was a useful skill, but he was damned if he couldn't rest afterwards.

Weiss had hurt him pretty damn hard. If it weren't for the sheer variety of tricks up his sleeve she'd have handily beat him with ease.

Sword and shield skills meant nothing against someone who could just eat away at his Aura from range, even with his shield up.

Jaune stood up slowly, groaning at the aching muscles that he could feel be slowly but surely removed by _System Body_.

He paced over to where Weiss still lay, and held out a hand.

"Good match, Weiss. C'mon, we've got to get to class," He said, a small smile on his face.

Weiss simply groaned in response, waited a second, and took his hand, the blond helping her to her feet.

Jaune could feel AWBN and RRYN approach them, and Pyrrha took Weiss's arm over her shoulder, helping her walk.

"Thanks Pyrrha," Jaune said, before looking around.

"You two sure made a mess," Yang commented with a laugh, and Jaune cracked a smile.

There was ice and fire littering the ground, the ice slowly but surely becoming a puddle of water which was even slower in turning to steam as it neared the fire.

Shrapnel of tile littered the floor from the various impacts too, and Jaune was hard-pressed to care about cleaning it.

It was a sparring hall, it was expected to take a beating.

"Oh well," Jaune said with a laugh. "I'm sure it'll be taken care of."

Blake rolled her eyes at that, and Ruby quickly shot over to Jaune.

"You've gotta tell us how you did all that!" Ruby was practically hopping up and down, and he noticed that her partner was just as excited to find out.

Jaune scratched at the back of his head. "I can't. We've got to get to class, remember?"

Both Ruby and Nora visibly pouted, and the two other members of RRYN quickly took on their roles as managers of responsibility, Ren and Yang seizing their respective associates and dragging them out of the sparring hall.

Jaune followed them, as they all made their way to their next class.

Although Jaune was probably even more likely to sleep through it than he had been for Port's class.

Whether that was a good thing or a bad thing remained to be seen.

 **[Sparring Complete!]**

 **[You gained 50XP!]**

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Battering Ram (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now charge an opponent, pinning them to a surface or knocking them aside. Costs 50 SP._ _ **Level 2; XP 38/96.**_ **]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Jump**_ **has reached level 2!]**

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Aura Control**_ **has reached level 2!]**

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Leading a Team**_ **]**

 **[Defeat Weiss Schnee in single combat, and prove that you are a capable leader!]**

 **[Reward: 2000 XP]**

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 6!]**

 **[+5 Skill Points!]**

* * *

Jaune had been right in that he was going to fall asleep in the next class.

There was something so inexplicably dull about a man who could talk a million miles a minute about something, and something very dull about the fact that he chose to talk about history.

Jaune wasn't a history buff at all, especially considering he could barely focus. He'd wanted to take a nap, and once Professor Oobleck had introduced himself Jaune had done just that, collapsing into his notebook and copying Yang, who also took the lesson as an opportunity to sleep.

He'd heard someone, probably Weiss, mutter something about blond hair, but that was the last thing he remembered about the lesson until Pyrrha had shaken him awake, just before the bell had gone off.

His first day at Beacon hadn't gone too great, but at least he'd survived. He stood up and began walking back to the dorms, accompanied by the other seven, but Weiss had stopped him, dragging him to the side.

Pyrrha had looked on, somewhat concerned, but Jaune just waved her on, the redhead nodding and continuing back to the dorm.

"I'm…" Weiss started, before falling silent.

Jaune was content to wait patiently for her to continue.

"I'm… sorry, about the way I acted. It was childish, and unfair. You won, fairly, and so I'll uphold my end of the deal. I'll stop being so… aggravating, and I'll treat you as I should have from the beginning. I apologise for my actions."

Jaune watched as she finished, before giving her a smile. "Don't worry about it, Weiss. I don't really have any experience as a leader, but I'll try my hardest to be the leader you all deserve. You guys are far stronger than me, and just because I won the spar doesn't mean you wouldn't win in a real fight. My only advantages were the fact you'd never seen me fight before. You'd probably best me if we fought again anyway."

"Hmph. I have no doubt about that. I would like to know what you are capable of, regardless. I don't want any more nasty surprises like today," Weiss said, and Jaune gave a laugh, scratching the back of his head.

"Sure, but you've got to tell me what you can do too. No sense in only me sharing," Jaune said, gesturing for Weiss to walk.

The two quickly caught up to the rest of the group, settling in to the tired conversations that the new students of Beacon Academy were having after their first day.

And to think, there were still so many days to go.

* * *

 **A pretty middle-arc chapter, but it does include the Weiss being bitchy moments that we all know from canon. Thankfully, Jaune didn't flirt with her so the only reason she was pissed was due to him being leader, which does make writing her easier.**

 **Nothing else much to talk about aside from reviews, so here we go!**

 **Alvelvnor: That's actually a really interesting idea, and whilst I can't think of any cultivation novels as you've mentioned off the top of my head, there will be passive and active buffs for stats. I'm just working out a few of the kinks in them before I implement.**

 **someUntel: I want it too, but he's going to have to work it real hard before its of a level capable of such destruction.**

 **SentinalSlice: Well, the description for the regular _Jump_ skill is already pretty OP. Seriously, I changed it in this chapter because when I looked back at it I realised that maybe giving Jaune the ability to jump a thousand feet at level 1 might be a little over the top. I'd prefer to keep skills in separate stages, partly because I don't want to bloat the System with 100 skills with similar abilities, and partly because only a few will really ever get used aside from the creation, and possibly the first encounter after their creation. As for the single leg _Mana Impact,_ that's something I actually really like. Technically, that might be considered a _Mana Stomp,_ so I may make that a skill and counteract my entire argument, but eh. I'm going to give cooking and such skill levels, but they don't directly effect anything significant. I just won't actually mention them, probably instead time-skipping over less interesting parts of it. The System is comparable to an RPG + The Sims, in that respect, I guess.**

 **Nokiabear: Thanks! I don't play actual RPGs, and when I do I go all completionist in the worst way possible and try to get all the skills, and all the stats. I'm really bad at min/maxing personally, so it would make sense that Jaune would be also, seeing as he hasn't experienced that many videogames. He knows of them, and he's dabbled, but that's the extent of his experience. As for metagame, well, so far his actions have had such far-reaching consequences I've only hinted at them so far.**

 **infadinityfollower: Aw, you flatter me. Also holy shit I want a tiny vicious scorpion girl, that sounds like a recipe for adorable disaster. I'm kind of thinking Neo merged with Tyrian, except the personality is leaning more towards Neo. Holy shit I want to write that so bad, but I don't think that's going to gel with the plot so far. Oh well. Maybe an omake? Oh, and yeah, AWBN are going to dominate, there's no one who could beat Pyrrha in Beacon, and with Weiss's extreme support semblance, Blake's stealth and evasion and Jaune's all-rounder approach, AWBN are a massive force to be reckoned with.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: If it weren't for the fact that I've read so many damn words for such a long time I'm certain translating exactly what you mean would prove to be even more complicated than it already is. I appreciate the comparisons, although I'm nowhere near anywhere as good as they are/were, and yes, those are good ideas. Technically the description for _Mana Slash_ only limits the length of the slash by the length of the weapon, so... As for Water Dust, I'm sure we all know how damn powerful water is. Ever been blasted by a fire hose?**

 **Slenderbrine: Both, and neither. I never specified, and thus that means I haven't decided on a limit yet. Why limit Jaune, Slenderbrine, why limit him?!**

 **Draxinus: I'm trying! This chapter was upwards of 5k words, and it does take its toll on my free time, of which I'm losing slowly but surely to the wrath of university assignments. These damn essays.**

 **The Squeeze: Glad you had the time! 8/10 is probably the best rating I've ever gotten, seeing as its also the first numerical rating I've gotten, but I agree with you wholeheartedly on the two cliches. Whilst they can be enjoyable in their own right, I don't think Systema is a good fit for either, especially with the plot I pretend to have planned. Besides, I can barely write romance between two people, let's not consider how terrible it would be with seven plus girls clamouring for his attention. Can you imagine?!**

 **ParadoxVictor: This review actually gave me the idea to use _Summoning_ to summon Grimm, like some kind of firing range sort of thing, and whilst that may or may not be a possibility I'm thinking _Summoning_ and _Summoning Ritual_ are more analogous to multi-purpose skills than a specific semblance. Although convincing Weiss that Jaune is her long lost brother would be pretty funny.**

 **And that's it for answerable reviews this week! Thank you all for sending in your feedback, and even if I didn't respond I still read it, I promise!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	8. Jaune Nods Four Times

**It's both technically late, and technically early. Sorry about missing last week, so have this week's two days early!**

* * *

The mace swung towards his face, and Jaune calmly blocked it, shield ringing out as the thick metal weapon impacted against it.

The driving force behind the mace shouted in frustration and swung again, but Jaune took the blow against his shield once more, stepping into the path of the weapon with his shield raised over his head, sword drawn.

Crocea Mors met Cardin's chest with speed as Jaune thrust, and the teen stumbled back, the point of his blade meeting resistance in the form of a thick metal breastplate, much larger and thicker than Jaune's own.

Another shout escaped Cardin's mouth as he pushed through the pain and exhaustion, swinging once again. The indomitable wall that was Jaune's shield met the bludgeoning weapon, deflecting it to the side where it seemed to explode, sending tile shrapnel into the air around the arena even as Jaune swung his longsword, the sharp blade of Crocea Mors arcing along a horizontal axis towards Cardin's head.

Cardin didn't even have time to react as it impacted hard against his temple, and whilst the boy's Aura took the lethal blade the force behind it was transferred, and Cardin was sent to the ground clutching his head, a throbbing headache forming within moments as it continued to ring like an explosion had gone off.

"Match complete, the winner is Jaune Arc. Mr Winchester, please pay more attention to your opponent's strategy, and formulate one of your own. Charging in recklessly and swinging with abandon is a brilliant way to get yourself killed. As for you, Mr Arc, if you have a chance to finish a fight before it begins, do so. Do not feel like you must limit yourself to suit your opponent. Wasting your Aura is bad, and wasting my time is worse."

Professor Goodwitch glared at the two combatants, and Jaune nodded, hand scratching at the back of his head like usual.

Cardin seemed too angry to take the advice to heart, frowning and muttering under his breath.

Jaune sheathed Crocea Mors and returned to his seat amongst both AWBN and RRYN, Pyrrha giving him a congratulatory smile as he placed himself down into his seat, and he gave his partner a smile in return as they all turned their attention to the next scheduled fight, as two students Jaune didn't recognize entered the arena and began their fight.

He unfocused on the fight and discreetly checked his notifications.

 **[Training Complete!]**

 **[You gained 100XP!]**

 **[A skill has leveled!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Aura Control**_ **has reached level 3!]**

 _Aura Control_ was useful to have, and continuing to level it was exactly what Jaune needed to do, so directing hints of his Aura to his arms when he took blows from Cardin's mace was a great way to train the skill, and also help him not be crushed by the sheer force Cardin could apply.

He wondered if soon enough he'd be able to block a direct hit from Nora's warhammer, but maybe that was less wishful thinking and more a suicidal notion.

He filed that one away in his mind under 'Bad Ideas', hoping to never consider that again. He liked his arms where they were, which was attached to his body.

The match between the two students seemed to go on forever as Jaune returned his attention to it, watching as they fought, the back and forth of their attacks draining both their Aura at a constant but slow rate.

Neither were particularly skilled, but they seemed to be at least somewhat equal, and as spear haft met dagger blade again and again Jaune, along with the rest of his team and RRYN, felt themselves becoming bored with a fight that didn't seem to be going anywhere.

Even Jaune knew that the basic tactics each side employed didn't serve much purpose and were more designed for fighting Grimm than people, and it was clear that even Professor Goodwitch was becoming more and more infuriated.

Finally, the spear-wielder landed the final blow, knocking the dagger-wielder to the ground, and as the Professor announced the end of the match the anger in her voice was apparent to all the audience.

She was about to begin informing the two students how a lack of effort in training would lead to significant losses further on in their Hunter careers when the bell rang, and she decided it would be best to simply keep the two back, and Jaune winced as she directed a gaze to the rest of the class.

"Class dismissed!" She'd called out, and both AWBN and RRYN were practically clambering out of the room over the top of the other students, all of which hoping not to attract the wrath of the professor.

They had a short lunch break before their next class, and sooner or later the two teams were headed for their respective classes.

Their schedules were different, of course, with varying electives and such, and that was how Jaune found himself, alongside the rest of AWBN, headed for History, with Professor Oobleck.

The class was somewhat smaller than their group lectures, and they quickly grabbed what free chairs were left.

Oobleck was quick to enter the room, and as he began to speak Jaune quickly forgot any mental agreement he'd made to pay attention, drifting off into a half-asleep kind of trance, staring blankly at the wall.

"Mr Arc, maybe you would like to finally contribute to the discussion. What was it that gave the Faunus such an advantage over General Lagune and his forces?" Oobleck asked, and Jaune felt his concept of reality fluctuate as he returned to normality, doing his best to regain his senses.

"Uh…" Jaune began, not quite sure what was happening, but he looked over to his partner, who was motioning something over her eyes.

"Binoculars?" Jaune threw out, the guess sounding even worse leaving his mouth than it did in his mind.

A laugh from behind him sounded out, and the class turned their gaze to Cardin.

"Well, Mr Winchester, if you feel like you can do better, please, by all means," Oobleck said, and Cardin gave that over-the-top 'I'm-better-than-everyone' smirk.

"It's 'cause it's easier to train an animal than it is a human," He said, and as it escaped his mouth Jaune could see the anger and repulsion in many of the surrounding students.

"You aren't the most open-minded of individuals, are you, Cardin?" Pyrrha spoke, and Cardin's cocky expression dropped as he glared at the champion with barely disguised maliciousness.

"What? You got a problem?" He practically shouted, but Pyrrha already had a response waiting, and she sprung her trap.

"No, I have the solution. Night vision," Pyrrha said. "Most Faunus are known to have nearly-perfect sight in the dark."

Blake decided to assist her teammate. "General Lagune was inexperienced, and made the mistake of trying to ambush the Faunus in their sleep. His massive army was outmatched, and the general was captured." She turned to face the angry teen, and with a hint of a smug expression continued to speak. "Perhaps if he'd paid attention in class, he wouldn't have been remembered as such a failure."

Cardin stood up, fists clenched, but Oobleck was first. "Mr Winchester! Take your seat!"

Jaune let out a chuckle, sharing a smile with his partner, but Oobleck was suddenly in front of him as well.

"You and Mr Winchester can both see me after class for additional readings!" Oobleck ordered, and Jaune slumped down into his desk with a sigh.

"Now, moving on!"

* * *

Forty pages!

That was like, two times twenty pages!

Jaune sighed as he walked out of the class behind the speedy professor, and was convinced he could give Ruby a literal run for her money.

It was like four times ten pages!

Okay, so he could say eight times five pages, but that was starting to become more redundant than the already repeated point he'd made.

"So, what was the punishment?"

Jaune looked up from his sulking, at his partner. "Pyrrha, you didn't have to wait for me."

"Regardless, I did. So, what is the professor making you do?" Pyrrha asked as the two slipped into a comfortable pace, headed towards the dorms.

"Read forty pages of the textbook and write an essay, by next class. I'd say I regret drifting off, but it was kind of worth it. You and Blake made a good one-two combo," Jaune said with a laugh, and Pyrrha's giggling joined his chuckle.

"Well, Cardin certainly deserves it, after that comment. I knew he wasn't a nice person, but I won't stand for his racism," Pyrrha replied, and before Jaune could reply they heard a shout from behind them.

"Jauney-boy! Put your money where your mouth is, huh?"

The two turned to see an irate Cardin staring them down, hands balled into fists.

"I thought I already did today, Cardin," Jaune replied, and that didn't do much to calm the teen down.

"Yeah? You think you're any good without that damned shield of yours?"

Jaune didn't get a chance to reply as Cardin broke into a sprint, fist swinging in a blatant right hook towards his face.

 _Aura Control_ flickered to life as the blow struck against his face, but it was not Jaune that got sent stumbling, Cardin's fist glancing off his Aura. Cardin hadn't expected it, and he'd over-extended, and Jaune quickly sent a fist into his gut.

Cardin bent over, and Jaune reacted almost on instinct, bringing a knee into his face with rapid precision, and for the second time today Cardin Winchester was brought down with a one-two combo.

"Jaune, are you alright?" Pyrrha asked, worry on her face.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Can't say the same about him. Do we take him to the infirmary?" Jaune consoled Pyrrha's worry, before staring down at the crumpled figure that was Cardin.

A notification popped, but Jaune ignored it for the time being.

"Leave him. I'm sure he can make it to the infirmary once he wakes up. I've hit weaker people harder and they've been fine."

Jaune looked at Pyrrha in surprise, her voice firmer and tougher than he'd heard before.

"You hit weak people?" Jaune asked, and Pyrrha's expression cleared quickly, her hands coming up in her defense.

"What? No! I just meant in training!" She exclaimed, a shocked look on her face.

"Sure, Pyrrha. Let's get back to the dorm," Jaune said, restarting his walk back to the dorms. Pyrrha began to follow him.

"I don't attack weak people, Jaune!"

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Unarmed Melee (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of wielding your bare fists, feet and various other body parts as weapons without difficulty! The higher the level of this skill, the more skilled you are with all unarmed attacks, and the more damage you are capable of dealing!_ _**Level 1; XP 2/12.**_ **]**

* * *

Xiphos met shield as Pyrrha clapped the two together in anticipation.

Her opponent looked ecstatic to even be up on the stage, and seemed to be in awe of the surroundings.

"Ms Nikos, Ms Valkyrie, you may begin!" Glynda called out, and Jaune watched in anticipation as his partner faced off against Ruby's partner.

Of course, the fight ended a lot sooner than any had expected, although considering Pyrrha's extensive tournament history that shouldn't have been a surprise.

Nora leapt forwards with an overhead strike, planning on bringing it down atop her fellow redhead, but Pyrrha simply dropped her shield and grabbed the handle of the hammer just before it impacted, stepping close to Nora and jabbing with her xiphos.

Nora's Aura flared as it hit, but Pyrrha wasn't done yet, flinging the shorter girl completely out of the arena with what looked somewhat unfeasible.

Jaune wasn't an idiot, he knew that without some kind of assistance there was no throwing someone like that.

It seemed that much like himself his partner had something to hide in regards to a semblance.

"Match over. Ms Nikos is the winner. Well done, Ms Nikos. As for you, Ms Valkyrie, I suggest you not use such visible attacks right out of the gate. You left yourself open, and paid the price."

Glynda seemed almost stunned that the match had ended that fast, and Jaune couldn't blame the normally unflappable professor, he was as equally stunned.

The professor hadn't even given any feedback to Pyrrha, and it was clear she didn't need it.

The two girls made it back to their seats, and where Jaune had been expecting a somewhat down Nora, he was once again mistaken.

"Pyrrha, that was awesome! You just grabbed Magnhild and threw me! You're incredible!" Nora exclaimed, a massive smile on her face.

Pyrrha gave a small smile, and went to speak, but Nora was already back in her seat talking animatedly with Ren.

Jaune leaned over. "I see your reputation is deserved."

"Of course it is you dunce!" Weiss whisper-exclaimed, glaring at her leader. "I still don't understand how you'd never heard of either of us!"

"I mean, I knew what the SDC was, but that doesn't mean I know the daughter of its CEO!" Jaune whisper-exclaimed back.

"Hmph!"

Jaune could hear an almost imperceptible laugh, and he flicked his head around to a slightly smiling Blake, head buried in a book to cover her face.

"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up. Who was it that saved you from those Ursa?" Jaune quipped, and Blake frowned behind the book.

"You distracted me, and the Ursa I was fighting without a problem landed a strike on me!" Blake joined the team in whisper-exclamations.

"I never claimed I didn't!" Jaune hissed in reply.

"Wait, the two of you knew each other before Initiation?" Pyrrha asked, surprise on her face.

"Knew is a strong word," Blake said, before Jaune could get in a word edgewise.

"AWBN, if you'd like to try paying some kind of attention for once, that would be appreciated."

All of AWBN quickly stopped their conversation in favour of not angering the fearsome professor, turning their attention to her.

"As I was saying, our excursion into the Forever Fall is coming up soon. I expect you all to be prepared, as it is Grimm-infested territory. That is all, dismissed."

The students began standing, chatter emerging from the crowd louder than ever.

"Forever Fall, huh? Why do they call it that?" Pyrrha asked.

"The leaves are always red," Both Blake and Jaune said at the same time, leaving their partners somewhat flummoxed.

"It's, uh… where we met," Jaune supplied, the confused looks slowly ceasing to be.

"What were you doing in the Forever Fall, Jaune?"

Surprisingly, it wasn't Pyrrha who asked, and Jaune turned to see a curious Ruby standing there, her team behind her.

"Oh, I was just doing some last minute training, that was all. Wanted to make sure I could pass the exam and all," Jaune explained, and Ruby nodded in understanding.

"Yeah, I know what that's like! I used to go out into the wilds on Patch and try and hunt, although there aren't too many Grimm on Patch. Mostly Beowolves, really," Ruby said wistfully, as if reenacting her training in her head.

"Well, why don't we, as team leaders, take our teams out into the Emerald Forest and train against some Grimm?" Jaune asked.

Ruby nearly broke her neck with the speed she nodded, her agreement rather obvious. "Yeah, we should! I still don't really know how Nora fights, and it'll be interesting to see how Ren and Yang work together!"

"We've got a free period next, don't we? Let's make good use of it."

* * *

The Emerald Forest was exactly how it had been the last time they'd been there, which had been initiation.

That was to say that it was mostly rubble at the bottom of a giant chasm, the remnants of an ancient temple structure that had succumbed to the combined efforts of the Nevermore, Death Stalker and the eight hunters-in-training.

Hopefully their training trip wouldn't prove to be so disastrous.

"So, first things first, how do we get down there?" Jaune asked, the eight of them up at the top of the Beacon cliffside once more.

"Well, we could always use the catapult platforms again," Ruby offered, but Jaune shook his head.

"Please no. Last time I used those I made a crater bigger than what you and Weiss made on the first day," Jaune replied, a loud laugh from Yang and a quiet chuckle from Blake his only congratulations for the witty remark.

"Hmph!" Weiss didn't seem to take that all too well.

"We could try climbing down, if that's not too difficult," Pyrrha spoke up, and Jaune glanced around to gather some kind of consensus.

"I believe I have a method that would be preferable to all those involved."

Eight sets of eyes snapped to the approaching figure.

Headmaster Ozpin stepped closer to the group, an easy smile on his face as he finished his pace and leaned against his cane.

"Headmaster, sir! We're just, uh…" Ruby began, but the headmaster held up a free hand.

"Please, Ms Rose, I already know what you eight are doing. I must applaud your eagerness, but I must also warn you away from foolishness. You do, of course, have my permission to train off campus, but please do be careful. You never know what is lurking out there," Ozpin spoke, and the eight listened intently.

"Now, as for a solution to your problem, I believe that I can requisition a Bullhead to take you down, and pick you up. It'll only be a scroll call away, and offers convenience in case of an emergency. In exchange, I'd like to speak to the leader of AWBN for a moment."

Ozpin's words sunk in slowly for Jaune, and as he met the gaze of the headmaster he saw through the facade the older man held, although it was only for a moment.

Cold eyes stared back into his.

"Of course, Headmaster Ozpin. You guys go, I'll catch up," Jaune said, and the seven hunters-in-training began their pacing towards the Bullheads near the front courtyard.

"Come, Mr Arc, I'd like to speak with you somewhere a little more private," Ozpin said, and Jaune blanched at the tone.

It was much colder, empty of emotion and unlike how he'd been speaking just a moment earlier.

It terrified him, but Jaune still followed as the Headmaster led him away from the cliffside and towards a small courtyard, where the older man took a seat, gesturing for Jaune to do the same.

Jaune did so, sitting opposite the intimidating presence.

"Mr Arc, we need to have a rather serious conversation."

* * *

Ruby was confused. She'd seen the look in Ozpin's eye, it was impossible to miss, and considering Blake, Weiss and Pyrrha looked a little stunned, it was clear they'd seen it too.

"What was that all about?" Ruby asked, and Pyrrha could only shake her head in confusion.

"We've seen the headmaster looking like that before, but now we know he was looking like that at Jaune. I wonder what he did?" Weiss asked aloud, although no one had any definitive answer to her.

"This couldn't be about Cardin, could it?" Pyrrha asked, and six faces turned to her.

"Yesterday, after class, Cardin attacked Jaune," Pyrrha began, and suddenly a chorus of 'What?' echoed across Beacon's exterior.

"Jaune beat him, easily, Cardin is even worse than any of us at hand to hand. I'm just wondering if that was what the headmaster was angry about," Pyrrha continued, a worried look crossing her face.

"No, that wouldn't make sense, we've seen those expressions on the headmaster's face before. He had that same expression in the induction ceremony," Weiss said, brow scrunched in thought.

"Maybe it's about Jaune's leadership?" Ren offered, and four very vocal 'No!'s sounded out.

Blake and Weiss looked at each other in surprise, unsure whether it was their own or the other's exclamation that shocked them the most.

"Jaune's done nothing negative so far. This entire training exercise was his idea. It has to be something else," Pyrrha remarked.

"Maybe it's a secret conspiracy!" Nora piped up.

"Nora, I doubt that very much," Ren replied.

"Maybe we could ask Jaune?" Yang ventured, and the group's gaze quickly followed hers, as the blond-haired swordsman approached.

"Jaune! What happened?" They chorused, and Jaune looked startled.

"Huh?" He asked, confusion on his face.

"Are you alright?" Pyrrha asked.

"What did the headmaster want?" Weiss asked.

"Woah, slow down. I'm fine, the headmaster just wanted to ask me about my semblance, that's all. Nothing to worry about," Jaune said, scratching the back of his head. "Let's just get in the Bullhead and get to training, we're wasting time!"

Jaune hopped in the awaiting Bullhead, and the rest of the group followed suit, but not without sharing a glance.

They made themselves comfortable, and Jaune leaned back into his stiff fabric seat, staring out the open door as they lifted off.

In the air, just in front of his face, floated a notification.

 **[A skill has leveled up!]**

 **[Skill:** _ **Deceitful Speech**_ **has reached Level 3!]**

* * *

"Mr Arc, I'm going to be completely and utterly blunt with you. Where and how did you gain access to the System?"

Jaune stared in shock at the headmaster.

"Mr Arc?"

Jaune couldn't formulate an answer.

"Mr Arc, do not play dumb with me, I am very much not in the mood to play games."

 **[System Mind has triggered!]**

 _System Mind_ didn't do much to dissuade his panic, but at least he could think of something to say.

"I…"

Okay, so thinking of something to say beyond one word was a little bit of a stretch at the moment.

"Mr Arc, I'm waiting, but I shan't be waiting much longer," Ozpin said.

"I just woke up with it!" Jaune blurted out, the words tumbling out of his mouth like a torrential downpour.

Ozpin seemed nonplussed. "You just… woke up with it?"

"One morning I just woke up with a blue window in front of me, that's all I know!" Jaune said, panic still rather audible in his voice.

The headmaster sat back, his expression turning from confusion to one of pondering.

"Interesting. So you didn't make a deal with anyone?"

Jaune shook his head rapidly.

Ozpin 'hmm-ed', a hand coming up to rest under his chin.

"This is rather odd, Mr Arc. I apologize for my demeanour in the past few days, I was under the impression you were, well, not who you are. The past few weeks have been rather… stressful, as you can imagine."

Jaune just nodded in response.

"I suppose you are rather intrigued as to how I know about the System, aren't you?" Ozpin asked.

Jaune nodded again.

"Hmm. Perhaps that is a tale for another time, but I will do my best to condense it, if you don't mind."

Jaune nodded a third time.

"Over the years, I've had a few students who've somehow managed to possess limited access to what has been come to be known as the System. However, you appear to have the most direct access to it, as to why I was so concerned. If you had been an enemy of Vale, you can imagine how dangerous it would be to leave you unsupervised."

Jaune nodded for a fourth time.

"Mr Arc, please stop nodding and say something," Ozpin said, a hint of exasperation in his voice.

"Oh, right. Uh… now what?" Jaune asked.

"Now, you join your friends and head out into the Emerald Forest to train. However, and I must stress how important this is, do not speak of this to your friends, or your team. The System is dangerous, particularly so for those who are close to the wielder. They tend to make the best hostages."

Jaune paled even further than he'd thought possible. Hostages?

That meant his friends were in danger just because of his existence. That wasn't a great feeling.

"Look, Mr Arc, your friends will be safe for the time being. Explicitly stating the existence of the System is dangerous, but your use of it is not. At least, I shouldn't think it would be. You needn't worry, you should just be wary," Ozpin explained, and that relaxed Jaune, if only slightly.

"Now, Mr Arc, go. Your friends are waiting."

Jaune stood up and made his way to leave, but he was given one parting comment.

"Be careful, Jaune. The world is a dangerous place."

Jaune gulped.

* * *

 **Ooh, spooky foreshadowing amongst spooky reveals. I kind of wanted to reveal this later, but I didn't really have anything to use to propel the plot along, so I figured I might as well have that conversation now. It fits, though, and at least Ozpin isn't evil! Kinda. Somewhat. We'll see.**

 **Anyway, as I said in the inital AN I apologize for the delay, I've been swamped with classes, lectures and assignments already, so you can imagine that I don't really have as much motivation to work on this as I'd like. Add to that fact that my sleeping has been acting up and you have a recipe for a very sleep-deprived Whale.**

 **Anyways, enough about me, onto reviews!**

 **someUntel: Skill XP doesn't exist in the sense of awarding separate XP for encounters. It used to be an encounter worth 50 XP gave 50 to level and 25 to all the skills, but I scrapped that when I redid the XP system, sorry that wasn't clearer. As for sleeping with eyes open, I don't know if it can be taught, but it is most definitely possible! Weiss walks out on Port because there are different things going on, and her attitude is veering into slightly non-canon territory. It won't change her significantly, of course, just a few nudges here and there to help the story flow better.**

 **merendinoemiliano: Does this chapter count? :P**

 **adislt: I'm not sure about fabled or legendary, as to what that would actually mean or where it's from, but you can be damned sure a form of double jump will make it in. Something about air-based maneuverability is always satisfying.**

 **Ozpin52: Coeur is one of, if not the most significant influence on what got me to start writing, so even an offhand comparison is high praise. Weiss is still a bitch, but a lovable bitch, like a particularly grumpy cat. Unlike Blake, ironically.**

 **death'sgodson1224-DGS: Man, that name is a mouthful. Double jump, though, on it's way!**

 **Slenderbrine: You are absolutely correct with how limitation breeds creativity, but I've never liked that kind of class-based restriction. Sure, it can work, and does work amazingly in certain scenarios, but I've always appreciated freedom in the way I play games, and that helps when writing this. Sure, I could class Jaune as a battlemage, but I prefer the Skyrim-esq system, where with enough time and effort you can max out all the damn skills. Of course, that won't happen, at least, not for a good long while, but you can understand where I'm coming from. There are limitations, of course, but it's more numerical and temporary than permanent and unavoidable. You are right about how inspiring it is though, have you read any of Forged Destiny!?**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: So, I went and checked out Aros R. Cao when you left this review, and man is her stuff a fun read. She seems to have disappeared for a little while, but I left a review on her stuff. I mentioned that I'd love to do an omake for her, if she wanted, and I'm glad to hear she helped you out of a rough phase. I still need to check out ARTS, I haven't gotten around to it yet. University, man, it's keeping me busy that's for damn sure.**

 **Alvelvnor: No problem! I'm glad someone noticed the chapter name, I put WAY too much time into thinking of one, only to pick a stupid joke. Positive Feedback reminds me of two things; Black Panther, and all of you guys. Sappy, shitty joke aside, that's actually a really good idea for a skill, although I think it would be separated into two or three skills, based on physical, mental and elemental resistance. Kinetic Feedback, hmm... writing that one down in the ever-growing spreadsheet. As for acheivements, I like the idea a lot. Hiding the requirements means that instead of it being something Jaune aims for I can use it as a convenient Deus Ex Machina!**

 **SentinalSlice: Mate, you needn't worry about seeming bossy. I've deleted a couple flamers' reviews off this already, just Guests trying to pick fights, and if that doesn't bother me you guys giving me ideas and suggestions is certainly not going to! Hoo boy, as for the maths, it can be a real turnoff for writers. I kind of mix it up, but most of the time I do the calculations at the same time as I write, so that way I don't forget and miss things. I made it easier for myself with the ungodly scripts I wrote very poorly, but they serve their purpose. I have some experience with basic code, so it wasn't the most complicated thing ever, and anyone who's ever used Excel or Sheets can tell you that what I've done is amateur at best and a disaster at worst. Also, I forget the name of most of the things I write, so I'd go back and search for what it was called but I can't be bothered. Uh... Bars? No, it was... eh. I can't remember. Also yeah, that'll be used more frequently during combat, but only if multiple variables change and I need to remind the reader of the numerical situation.**

 **Mr Beaver Buttington: Yeah, in hindsight I guess it does, but I had to summarize the content and explain the fact that it isn't self-insert or full of bloated, bad formatting and poor grammer. Not terrible is the best I could do with the character limit, and there's an extra letter in there that I keep forgetting to remove. Damn it, I'm not even going to bother removing it. I hope the pretentiousness doesn't dissuade you from reading though!**

 **rammieson: Well, opposite side of the coin. I've never been able to read self-inserts that aren't written really, really well, or aren't actually self-insert. Most are Mary Sue/Male Sue (Whatever that's called), and not at all focused on the actual writer. That does give me an idea for a really short one-shot though.**

 **lordrednight: Aw, thanks! I really appreciate the feedback, and I'm glad to hear that you are liking the dynamic. I hope this chapter somewhat expanded upon that, and although RRYN is more of a background focus, I hope to somewhat explore all the characters. It won't be a character per arc, of course, but somebody will have something to do with something or somebody at some point. You wouldn't think I were I writer with how I just put that, huh.**

 **TypedSomeWords: This is a lot to go through, although most of it isn't neccesarily answerable, but thank you so much for the indepth responses! Pyrrha isn't dead yet, so we'll be able to see her fight a little bit more, especially considering that this fic is going to be a little bit more monster-focused for a while. I'm sorry to hear you dislike Blake, but I can understand why. She can be a little bit aggravating to read, and the same goes for writing her. Sometimes no dialogue is harder to write than dialogue. As for Jaune's abilities, I've always been a big fan of creative and interesting methods of solving problems, and so when it comes to writing fights I like to make things a little bit different. Sure, Jaune could just whack away at things and then cower behind his shield, only raising his physical combat skills, just like this chapter with Jaune and Cardin, but sometimes you've just gotta make a crater in a forest. Lancaster is certainly appealing, at least for this fic, and I feel like the leadership roles contribute to that. I'll definitely consider it, but we'll have to see what happens. Maybe I'll have Ruby get brutally murdered. Who really knows? And, finally, Battle Cry, and Jaune's reliance on what is actually a rather dangerous skill. There's something there, that you're onto, and that's something I'm planning on developing.**

 **Woah, that was a lot of responding! Sorry if I didn't reply to your review, but I'm still reading and considering it, thanks!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	9. Greek Myths

**Oh look, a chapter on a Thursday. That hasn't happened for a little bit!**

* * *

Jaune was so, so thankful that he was no longer motion sick.

It would seem like an understatement to most, but his air time no longer came with additional trash-can time, and he was oh so pleased with that addendum.

Sure, Ozpin had impressed upon him that if he told any of his friends about his semblance they were likely to be kidnapped and held hostage in exchange for rather complicated favours and all sorts of other illegal activities, but the upside was he could absorb that information mid-flight without emptying his inner contents all over his outer contents.

"So, where in the Emerald Forest are we going, Jaune?"

The teenager looked up as his name was mentioned, glancing about the seven other faces and settling on Ruby, the one who had spoken. In hindsight it shouldn't have taken him that long.

"I don't really know, somewhere out of the way? We only just fought in the area close to the cliffs, so there aren't going to be that many Grimm, so maybe someplace a little further out?" Jaune ventured, and it appeared that an eighth person had been listening, as the Bullhead course-corrected slightly, veering through the air at a slightly different angle.

The others felt the change too, their center of balance shifting ever so slightly, and glanced out the windows at the shifting landscape beneath them.

The Emerald Forest once again lived up to its namesake, green leaves atop trees flashing past as they cruised overhead, the Bullhead's engines giving off the telltale whine of aircraft engines.

"Alright kiddos, we're coming up on your stop!" Came the voice of the pilot, as he expertly maneuvered the aircraft into place, lowering it from the sky to come to rest just above the untamed grass in a clearing.

"Thank you for flying Nickel International Flights, I hope you enjoyed your flight, and please fly with us again!" The pilot shouted as the doors slid open, the engine noise no longer dampened by the sheets of metal.

Jaune and Ruby were the first off the Bullhead, dropping onto the ground and quickly putting some distance between themselves and the vehicle, which conversely unloaded the rest of its cargo, the remaining members of AWBN and RRYN touching solid ground and taking up positions, weapons drawn.

They could feel a cold chill in the breeze as it passed through the trees, and Jaune involuntarily shivered slightly as it passed over his exposed skin.

"C'mon, let's get moving," Ruby said, and the rest of them nodded in agreement, before all stalling.

"So, uh, sis, where are we going?" Yang asked, looking towards her sister and team leader.

Ruby froze, looking around. "Uh…" Her gaze traced around the clearing, before locking eyes with her fellow team leader.

"West?" Jaune offered, and Ruby nodded in agreement. "West it is!"

Eight Hunters-in-training began their trek through the emerald green trees and grass of the aptly named forest.

* * *

"You know, when you said we were all going to the Emerald Forest to hunt Grimm, I assumed we'd, you know, hunt some Grimm?"

Jaune sighed once again as Yang voiced her opinion. "Yang, it's only been ten minutes. I'm certain we'll be dealing with incredibly dangerous circumstances with a massive amount of Grimm at any moment."

A exhalation was the only sign of humour from Blake, a slight smirk on her face.

"Um, speaking of…" Ruby began, and the group swiveled their heads to face the direction the scythe-wielder was looking.

The crimsonette was staring at a tree that looked like it had been split down the middle, a massive rent in the log visible, the ground covered in splinters.

"Whatever did that doesn't look friendly," Pyrrha offered, and Jaune nodded in agreement.

"Weapons ready, guys, partner up. We're getting close to something big, and we can't afford to be messing around," Jaune said, and the rest responded by loading, cocking and drawing the various weapons that made their group so unique.

Amongst the click-clacks and metal scrapes of their weapons being drawn, Jaune swore he heard a sound.

His shield raised to position, and he noted out of the corner of his eye as Pyrrha did the same, the two most defensive students instinctively preparing themselves to act as the teams bulwarks against whatever incoming attack was impending.

 _Sixth Sense_ triggered before he saw what was pushing their position, so the sudden assortment of Grimm that flowed out of the bushes didn't catch him too off-guard, but it wasn't fast enough to provide him with enough time to react as he was pushed into the defensive right off the bat.

His shield clanged as the Beowolf's claws impacted, but he buried the blade of Crocea Mors into its stomach almost immediately afterwards, and the creature howled in pain, only to be cut off as a bullet entered its face and exited the rear of its head, taking a considerable chunk along with it.

He didn't even have time to thank whoever it was that ended the Grimm as more onset themselves against his shield.

Another Beowolf set itself upon him and he blocked, stabbed, slashed and bashed to the best of his ability, carving his way through the constant enemy onslaught alongside both his and Ruby's team.

One slice after another, bullets flying over his head, and Jaune continued to fight alongside his friends.

The flow of Grimm slowed to a trickle after some time, and finally they managed to clear the area.

Jaune stayed standing as the rest, even Pyrrha, slumped to the ground, exhaustion almost palpable.

"That enough excitement for you, Yang?" Jaune asked through rapid breaths, leaning against the pommel of his sword, blade buried in the dirt.

An exhausted laugh escaped his fellow blonde's lips. "Yeah, I'm all good for today."

"Jaune, how are you even still standing?" Weiss asked, and Jaune let out a weak chuckle.

"What can I say, I'm tougher than I look," He replied, even as his legs slowly but surely regained feeling. He was technically only standing because he was leaning against Crocea Mors, but he wasn't about to fess up to that.

"You killing one Grimm makes you look tougher, Jaune," Yang remarked, and Ruby reached over to weakly slap her sister.

"You wound me," Jaune said, feigning injury, a smile on his face.

He waited a moment, until everyone was busy recovering, and discreetly began checking the notifications that had popped up.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 5520 XP!]**

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 7!]**

 **[+5 Skill Points!]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: One-handed Melee**_ **has reached Level 7!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Shield**_ **has reached Level 7!]**

 **[** _ **Shield Bash**_ **has reached Level 7!]**

 **[** _ **Shield Bash**_ **now costs 15 SP!]**

 **[For excessive physical exercise, you have gained 1 point of STR and 1 point of END!]**

Well, that was all great. Jaune was level 7, and so was his most used physical combat skills!

Jaune cheered internally at that, happy to see that his hard work was paying off.

"So, do we head back now?" Blake asked, looking around the area.

Jaune scratched at the back of his head, hoping to at least sway the attention he might've gathered, seeing as he'd been staring into space with a giddy smile. "Uh, I don't know. Sure?"

"Real commanding presence, scraggly," Yang quipped, and Jaune glared at her.

"I'm not scraggly!" He exclaimed, before giving himself a once over.

"Am I scraggly?" He asked the somewhat-entertained crowd.

"Yep!" Nora answered for the group, popping the 'P'.

"Don't worry, Jaune, you still have time to grow into your frame," Pyrrha said from the sidelines.

Jaune sighed. "Thanks, Pyrrha."

The group began to stand up, preparing to make their way back east and reunite with their pilot.

A cacophonous screeching dissuaded them of that notion rather quickly.

* * *

Eight figures broke through the leafy cover as they ran, an all-out sprint as fast as they could possibly move without leaving the others behind.

Behind them, a massive heron-like bird soared overhead, and as they cried out warnings to each other the rain of metallic gold-orange feathers impacted the ground around them.

Jaune wasn't as lucky as some of his more agile teammates, and one such feather impacted against his shield, and thanks to some well-thought-out forethought, his shield was extended and placed against his back.

It knocked him over, of course, but it didn't do more than bruise his pride, and as he stumbled head over heels through a shrub he managed to get a glance at the creature that pursued them.

Ever quick on the draw, he _observed_ it.

 **[Stymphalian]**

 **[Grimm, Level 6]**

Okay, that was bad. He'd never even heard of a Stymphalian before, and that was concerning.

He clambered to his feet and joined the rest of the running teams, a warning on what it was about to leave his lips.

"It's a Stymphalian!" A voice that was not his own shouted, and Jaune looked to the source, his own partner running swiftly, one heeled boot after another pounding the ground in time with his own.

"Okay, that's its name, anything else?" Jaune shouted back, a concerned look on his face.

"It's like a really angry Mistralian Nevermore!" Pyrrha shouted, as she rolled forwards, a sharp bronze-coloured feather impacting in the dirt behind her, sending up the ground in a shower of clumpy particles.

"Can we fight it?" Ruby asked, her voice only just carrying across the distance between them, despite her shouting.

"We need range, lots of it. It'll just pick us off one by one otherwise!" Pyrrha shouted back, and the group took that as permission to open fire as it soared over their heads.

"We need to separate, space ourselves out! If it swoops, we'll all be caught out in it!" Jaune called out, and they began to distance themselves from each other, even as bullets and dust flew at the Stymphalian, of which's bronze-coloured beak opened to deliver another punishingly loud screech.

Jaune winced at the sound, but set about channeling mana into his fingertips.

He loosed a shot, a _Mana Bullet_ careening through the air and impacting against the Stymphalian's wing.

The giant bird-Grimm screeched again, and Jaune stared at the smoky hole he carved through its wing, severing tendons.

It wasn't anywhere near significant enough to deal any kind of proper damage, and the Stymphalian seemed fine, the beast still airborne, but he'd done at least something to it. Crocea Mors wasn't quite as effective at this range.

That wasn't to say it wasn't effective at blocking projectiles, and the return volley was mostly aimed in his direction, so up went his shield, the impacting feathers skittering off the metal with sharp clangs, and Jaune noted that Pyrrha was doing much the same as he.

 _Observe_ triggered at the behest of Jaune, the teen hoping for some kind of change in the health indicator.

 **[Stymphalian]**

 **[Grimm, Level 6]**

 **[Health: Lightly Wounded]**

Well, it was something. He had to stay on the bright side, had to look at the silver lining, because not doing so was not only bad for his morale, and his teams, but also a great way to attract more Grimm.

"Crap!" Jaune swore, as the avian monster decided that the ranged bombardment wasn't cutting it, swooping towards them.

Either Jaune needed to increase his luck stat or the Grimm thought he was the biggest threat, because that bronze-coloured beak was pointed right at him, red eyes staring him down with significant malicious intent, and Jaune realised this was an attack he couldn't block.

A _Jump_ was needed, and so he did just that, coalescing Aura into his feet as he leaped into the air, just barely clearing the snapping beak of the bird and rolling to a landing on the other side, unharmed but in a state of minor shock.

He'd just jumped over a giant bird Grimm.

His parents were going to kill him.

The constant sound of gunfire halted, and Jaune looked around.

"Where's it gone?" He asked, only to see the distant figure of Ruby point up at the sky.

He didn't really need her to point it out, because almost straight after he asked the Stymphalian's massive body blocked out the sun, casting a shadow over the hunters-in-training, and driving them into a state of mild panic.

"What's it doing?!" Ruby cried out, and Pyrrha couldn't answer, just as confused as the rest.

A screech echoed out over the surrounding area, and Jaune paled as the heron-like neck curled, before the bird-Grimm stretched out, head pointed down as it soared over their heads.

Sickly green smoke sprayed from its mouth, and Jaune, ever quick on the draw, realised something significant.

"Poison!" He shouted, running as fast as he could to the side of the aerosol-like toxin that sunk through the air towards the group.

"Weiss, Air Dust!" Blake shouted, and her partner felt herself jolt into action, the rotating cylinder of her weapon twisting until it reached the bright white powder.

A glyph appeared in the air and began twisting, spinning faster and faster in an effort to blow away the poison gas, but it didn't last long as a bronze-coloured feather punctured through it, shattering it and causing the heiress to stumble backwards from the sheer force of the impact.

"Blake, get Weiss out of there! Ruby, break cover, split up! This thing's to tough for us! We need to get back to Beacon!" Jaune shouted, and he watched as Blake swung in close to her partner, using her black ribbon like a grappling line, supporting her from a thick tree branch.

"We can't just leave, Jaune! What about our ride!" Ruby called out, and Jaune swore to himself, having forgotten that detail.

"Damn it, you're right. Someone call for our ride out of here, tell the pilot it's hot!" Jaune said, and he watched as Yang withdrew her scroll, somewhat panicky as she swiped through number after number before reaching the one she wanted.

The gas had hit the ground by now, and thoroughly coated the area, but thankfully they'd made it out of the dangerous area, the toxic gas already beginning to dissipate somewhat.

Of course, that didn't mean the threat had passed, and Jaune watched as a feather impaled the ground an inch away from his nose. What a way to show him not to forget to pay attention.

Even as he recoiled the barrage continued, thudding into place behind him as the colossal bird flew over him.

"Dust, that bird!" Weiss exclaimed, as she and Blake dropped in next to Jaune and Pyrrha, all four watching its flight path through the sky.

A shout careened over the distance between the two teams. "Our ride's inbound!"

Jaune waved thanks to the blonde brawler as he considered their options. "We can't leave with this bird on our tail, it'll tear us to shreds. Any ideas?"

His teammates stared at him, and Jaune sighed. "Right, I'll just come up with one. How about-"

Jaune didn't finish his sentence, unless you counted the grunt of pain he loosed as a feather plunged into his arm, halving his aura and pinning his clothing into the dirt.

"Urgh!" Jaune grunted again as he face-planted, tasting dirt in his mouth.

"Jaune!" They all cried out in shock, quickly rushing to their leaders aid.

Jaune, for his part, clambered back to his feet, tearing a chunk of his hoodie away at the shoulder as he did so, the fabric still pinned underneath the pointed end of the feather.

"I'm fine!" He spluttered, spitting out the misplaced dirt as he faced the Stymphalian, and he was sure it was wearing a cocky expression.

"Should we just keep shooting at it, wear it down?" Pyrrha asked, and Jaune shrugged.

"I guess so, not like we've got much else to work with," he answered, and the reply to that was for the three to open fire.

Ruby appeared to get the message just fine without any of them actually having to say anything aloud, as she and her team rejoined the veritable stream of varied projectiles they sent towards the avian Grimm.

Jaune waited a beat, before leveling another _Mana Bullet_ , releasing it when the bird came close enough that he was able to be accurate. He was no sniper, and it wasn't like he had a scope, his aim was almost entirely instinctual.

Instinctual or not, he still hit, and the bird screeched.

"We're getting to it!" Jaune cried out over the sounds of gunfire and pain that echoed amongst the Emerald Forest.

At that moment, the sound of their gunfire was almost completely drowned out by much louder, much larger guns that whirred to life, and a line of bullets traced their way through the air, cutting through the Stymphalian easily, the Grimm rolling in the air in order to put its bronze wings in the way of the oncoming fire.

The Bullhead had arrived, apparently, and the pilot was about as happy as the rest of them to see the airborne monster.

The aircraft swerved out of the way, coming around for a second strafing run, and Jaune watched as sparks flew off the Stymphalian's wings.

An _Observe_ revealed that the bird was wounded, and Jaune was thankful for that. At this rate, they'd kill the damn thing and leave within a few minutes, and he could go back to his dorm and have a nice shower and a long sleep.

He needed it, not to mention how much he deserved it, with the amount of work he'd already put in today.

The Stymphalian screeched louder than ever before as rounds pelted its wings, the occasional shot puncturing through flesh and bone to cause irreparable damage to internal organs and tendons, and other inside-the-body things that Jaune couldn't name off the top of his head.

"Yeah, get him!" Yang cheered from the distance, and Jaune could see Nora practically jumping up and down in excitement as the avian continued to screech in pain, dying slowly but surely.

It wasn't done yet, though, and it spun around far faster than even the pilot had been expecting, and it flapped hard, dislodging the feathery projectiles at the aircraft.

Thankfully, it wasn't significant damage, although the Bullhead was smoking slightly and missing a few plates of armor, but that wasn't what concerned Jaune.

The Bullhead fired a final burst that entered and summarily exited the skull of the Stymphalian, and it began to plummet, building up speed as it uncontrollably swooped down, pointed to the ground at a steady angle.

Jaune began to slowly back up, as did the rest of AWBN, but it was going to fast.

They didn't have time to dodge.

Jaune paled, focused, and stepped in front of his team, unleashing a colossal roar from the depths of his lungs, steeling his stance and tightening his grip on his shield.

Everything went black.

* * *

The hazy feeling of pain washed over him as he attempted to open his eyes, to dissuade the darkness that clouded his vision, but it was to no avail as even with eyelids stretched wide he couldn't see anything.

"-une! Jaune!"

Jaune strained to hear, his name being repeated in a muffled chorus of voices.

"I'm under here!" He would've said from beneath the heavy weight that pressed down atop him, but his voice came out as a groan of pain, and no vocalised words.

He couldn't see, still, but he did have a few tricks up his sleeve to attempt to alter that, and he was thankful that he had an awaiting series of notifications.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 4140 XP!]**

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 8!]**

 **[+5 Skill Points!]**

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Field (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can cast a sphere of Mana around yourself, protecting you and those close by from harm. Mana Field can only take a certain amount of damage, and high enough damage dealt will pass straight through. Costs 8 MP/s._ _**Level 6; XP 1440/2592.**_ **]**

There were more, but Jaune didn't exactly feel like sorting all that out at the moment, as he strained against the heavy mass that sat on him, pushing away at the black thing.

He assumed it was the Stymphalian corpse, it couldn't really be anything else, and he continued to struggle away, attempting to free himself from the weight.

He could hear muffled groans from all around him, and he redoubled his efforts.

He wasn't the only one underneath the corpse.

"C'mon, AWBN, push!" Jaune cried out, but it came out as a strained kind of hoarse whisper, with his lungs as crushed as they were.

He was making progress, though, ever so slowly.

His arms flopped back down an inch as his panting increased, and he realised something.

"Meters," He murmured, and watched as another light source joined the notifications, the small window glowing slightly.

 **[Jaune Arc|Level 8]**

 **[XP: 3552/6144]**

 **[HP: 180/180 (0.9/s)]**

 **[SP: 180/180 (3.6/s)]**

 **[MP: 0/180 (1.8/s)]**

 **[AP: 240/1440 (0.36/s)]**

 **[Exhausted I]**

Well, that explained a little. Exhaustion was preventing him from accessing his full stats, and even with his full stats he doubted his STR was high enough to lift a massive Grimm corpse off of him from a lying position.

He doubted even Yang could do that.

It was time to try something a little different.

He waited for almost a minute, and after a little bit of time he had enough Mana to focus it and channel it into his hand.

It formed much like a _Mana Bolt_ , but unlike _Mana Bolt_ he did not want it to shoot off and hit something at range.

No, this was more like a blast.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Blast (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of firing a blast of Mana, which whilst short range is powerful enough to launch targets away, and knock targets prone, as well as reflect certain projectiles. Costs 60 MP per cast._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

Any onlookers watching the corpse would've seen the immediate burst of black ichor that sprayed from the top of the dead Stymphalian, and they would've also seen the black-drenched figure of a shaky Jaune Arc climb out, hoodie torn asunder.

"Jaune!" The voices of RRYN called out, but Jaune had other things to focus on, as he searched around for Crocea Mors.

"Here, Jaune!" Ruby called out, and Jaune finally looked at the small scythe-wielder, who handed him his weapons. "They were on the ground just over there."

Jaune gave the girl a nod, before he stabbed the blade into the corpse, and set about carving chunks from the already fading Grimm.

"Pyrrha, Blake and Weiss are still underneath. We need to help them," Jaune said, an underlying calm in his voice he was certainly not feeling.

Ruby paled, and began cutting at the body alongside him.

The size of the Stymphalian meant it would take at least an hour for it to all fade away, and the rest of his team didn't have that much time.

"Nora, blow up bits away from us!" Ruby called out to her partner. "Ren, Yang, get the other side and try and cut your way in!"

Her team followed her orders, and they systematically began lightening the corpse as best they could.

The Bullhead, having landed, noticed what was happening and taken off once more, maneuvered itself above the corpse, and as it hovered there Jaune watched as the pilot began lowering a cable.

Jaune grabbed it once it was within reach, and used the slack he was being fed to begin wrapping it around the strongest, least disintegrated parts of the avian.

He gave a wave to the Bullhead, and the engines whine ramped up in pitch as it began straining to lift, but Jaune paid it no mind as he continued to hack off excess weight, making the job all the less difficult for the aircraft.

After a couple minutes, the bird's body was lifted almost three feet in the air, and Jaune quickly ducked underneath, closing in on the nearest of the three collapsed figures, grabbing them and carrying them back out, before he and Yang went in to retrieve the other two.

Pyrrha moaned in Yang's arms whilst Weiss remained completely unconscious, and Blake, while awake, was barely coherent, a bleeding head wound concerning Ren, who was doing his best to administer first aid.

The cable trembled, but Jaune motioned to the pilot to release it, and the corpse payload unhooked, a loud thump sending a wave of dust into their faces.

The pilot was quick to land regardless, and as all the members of RRYN plus Jaune carried the rest of the members of AWBN into the rear of the aircraft Jaune remembered something.

He dropped back out and quickly scanned across the ground, gaze tracing over the dirt until he found what he was looking for.

A small stack of items awaited him, set in a neat pile.

He didn't even look at them, quickly and quietly scooping them into his inventory before quickly climbing back into the Bullhead, Ruby urging the pilot to head for Beacon.

He leaned back into a seat as the aircraft accelerated at a speed that Jaune didn't think possible and yet was thankful for, the eight closing on their academy faster than ever before.

Jaune could tell Ruby was worried, but he could barely feel anything. Exhaustion was trying to make him sleep, and it was an active struggle to prevent himself from drifting off, with only his sheer willpower keeping him at least somewhat coherent.

He was starting to think that maybe he wasn't immune to injuries, and that was the last thought to pass through his mind before the world, once again, went dark.

* * *

 **So, any time I involve forests and Bullheads something always goes down. Don't ask me why, but it happens in canon too, so don't blame me solely for that.**

 **And Nickel the Pilot makes a surprise cameo, so that's fun.**

 **The original plan for this chapter was to have the Stymphalian shoot down the Bullhead and have it crash into AWBN, but I felt like this works better, and Nickel gets to live another day!**

 **As for skills and such in this chapter, I finally get to pull Mana Field and Mana Blast out of the spreadsheet, so that's always fun.**

 **Now, reviews!**

 **merendinoemiliano: Well, if Pyrrha lives through the current ordeal I'm certain Nora will be more experienced in her fighting style!**

 **thebebb: I'm glad to hear that, really. It is still quite similar to The Gamer, but the way I perform all the background stuff is completely different. Whereas The Gamer is written a lot more classically, I guess, I treat this as more of a game than a story. The calculations all happen properly, and anything that happens obeys the laws I've established so far. Seriously, once I finish this whole fic I might release the spreadsheet so that everyone can see it, and be shocked as to how poorly it's organised.**

 **infadinityfollower: You know, I completely forgot that was a plot point in The Gamer, but kind of? It'll be expanded upon more later, but I do have the majority of the lore mapped out for the System.**

 **Pyropuppet: Flash and Brace are really good ideas, and I am a particularly big fan of Flash. _Mana Flash_ has officially been added to the spreadsheet!**

 **csad21: I find Cardin is most useful as a side-antagonist much like canon, but unlike canon everyone, including Jaune, got into Beacon through legitimate means, and can fight. CRDL has gone from the weakest team with the second weakest leader, to the weakest team with the weakest leader, so expect to see him get the crap kicked out of him more often. I might do a redemption arc with him later on, but for now he'll serve as everyone's favourite punching bag.**

 **Ozpin52: The man's old, but he ain't senile. He just needed a little bit of time to collect his thoughts :P**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: I'm just going to say that killing people to steal skills is a good idea and a terribly immoral idea. I love it. Maybe Jaune'll end up with Moonslice, after killing his lover. Who knows.**

 **Alvelvnor: I'm thinking Achievements are really rare, less so perfect clears and more 'Kill 1000 Beowolves' kind of thing. Less achievements and more milestones, I guess. If I do end up using Style Points it'll be when Jaune accidentally becomes a pro-skater by somehow stealing a weapon in the Vytal Tournament, if he and his team make it there :P**

 **SentinalSlice: Shh, don't spoil it :P**

 **Guest: You know, he really is. Maybe I'll easter-egg the "take this" line into the fic somehow. I'm certain I could fit that in somewhere.**

 **Eli Allison: Probably not, but maybe I'll include a darksaber-esq weapon in Systema.**

 **TypedSomeWords: I have absolutely no qualms about killing any character in RWBY. Seriously, I'm an emotionless freak who only barely cried at the deaths of Pyrrha and Penny.**

 **Guest: I mean, technically? I assumed it was less kinetic force and more straight damage, but it is pretty similar.**

 **Mordred's Stories: Well, that remains to be seen. I said others had access to the System, but I didn't say that they were living!**

 **GL: This enough levels to suit you?! Is it?! (It is balanced, and we won't see Jaune-God, King of Kings any time soon. Sorry to disappoint.)**

 **kamenheroHEISEI: Ever played an RPG before? Base 10 is pretty standard for a good reason!**

 **Alright, that about does it for reviews this week, and I don't have classes next week, so hooray! More writing time! Expect the next chapter next Thursday, I won't miss it (probably) so...**

 **As always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	10. Through the Window! To the Floor!

**Almost missed the Thursday deadline, whoops. Got the chapter done, though it is a little shorter than usual.**

* * *

One fist after the other met the punching bag, until the bag itself ruptured, spitting sand across the floor of the gym.

"Shit."

Hands reached down in a vain attempt to clean up the mess, but it was a poor effort, only made more apparent as sand continued to spill from the wound.

Rump met sandy floor, and fists slammed against the ground in anger, as a sigh permeated the air.

Yang's head gently thumped against the floor as she lay down, sand piling slowly on her chest as she lay there, uncaring.

"Are you okay, Yang?"

She twisted her head, noticing her partner enter the gym, a concerned look on his face.

"Hey, Ren. I'm fine," Yang said, from her spot on the floor.

"So you say," Ren spoke, eyeing the blonde girl as she sat up, brushing the sand off of her.

"I… I just wished we could've done more, you know?"

The brawler unhooked the punching bag from its hook and dragged it to the edge of the gym, grabbing a replacement and stringing it up.

"I understand how you feel. I'm much in the same boat, as it were."

Yang eyed the boy, calm demeanour a sharp contrast to her own. Her fist lashed out, striking the bag once more, and she started a steady rhythm.

"We should've been stronger."

THUD!

"We should've been faster!"

THUD!

"We should've…"

THUD!

Ren stepped closer, and placed a hand on her shoulder. "We did all we could, Yang. They're alive, thankfully, and that's the best outcome we could've hoped for."

Lilac met pale pink as the two stared at each other.

"Yang! They've woken up!"

The voice was indistinguishably their team leader, and that hypothesis was proven even more true as she sped into the room.

The partners shared a glance with their speedy leader, before following her at a brisk pace.

* * *

When Weiss opened her eyes, the last person she expected to be sat in a chair at the end of her bed was her blond leader.

She also didn't expect for him to be asleep, and as she looked around she realised she didn't expect to wake up in Beacon's infirmary.

Nor did she expect to see Blake and Pyrrha lying asleep in their own hospital beds just down from her.

Her mind flickered back to its last memory.

Darkness.

Weiss flinched involuntarily, hands against her forehead, as she remembered.

Even as her palms came away, coated in the cold sweat that covered her body, she couldn't stop remembering.

She'd been crushed by that giant bird Grimm. So had Jaune, Pyrrha and Blake.

And yet, Jaune was the only one not in a hospital bed, despite the one to take the brunt of the impact.

Actually…

Had he?

He'd done something, she'd seen it, right before they'd been hit, he'd thrown his hands up and roared.

He'd glowed, and so had the sphere of power that had appeared.

Aura, semblance, whatever it was, it just added another capability to him, and she thought she'd almost beaten him in their fight.

Weiss let out a near imperceptible laugh under her breath, as she looked at her team leader.

Her, leading AWBN?

She'd been a fool. A wilful, spoilt fool.

"Glad to see you find out suffering funny, Weiss."

Ice blue locked on to amber as Weiss looked at her partner, a frown on her face.

"Hmph. I don't find our pain funny in the slightest." Her gaze softened slightly, as she gave her partner a once over. "How do you feel?"

Blake gave the heiress a rare smile, before attempting to stretch. A hiss of pain escaped her lips. "I feel like I've been hit by a truck."

"Likewise. At least the Stymphalian is dead," Weiss said, as the two turned their gaze to Pyrrha.

The invincible girl was out like a light.

"So, do we ask our fearless leader exactly what it was he did to save us?" Blake asked, and Weiss shook her head.

"Not now. We'll discuss it with Pyrrha first, she deserves to know as much as we do. I think our leader is hiding something. His semblance is… unthinkable."

Blake's face joined Weiss's, scrunched up in thought.

* * *

"Dust, it's good to see you guys awake!" Yang exclaimed, as team AWBN gave the vocal blonde a chorus of relatively polite thanks.

"Yeah, we were so worried when the birdy hit you!" Nora cried out, latching onto Ren as she jumped up and down. "But you're fine now, and the birdy died, so we're all safe!"

"We didn't really know what to do, but Jaune stepped up to the plate, and made sure we got you guys out!" Ruby said, taking a seat next to the boy in question.

"Heh, yeah, I just tried my hardest, that's all," Jaune admitted, scratching at the back of his head.

That had Weiss's suspicion on its highest alert.

"We thank you, all of you, but do you mind giving us a moment to talk as a team?" Weiss asked, and four confused faces whipped around to face the heiress.

Ren was not one of these faces, and he motioned to the rest of RRYN, the group stepping outside.

Blake was thinking along the same wavelength as her partner, and faced the confused blond. "Jaune, we saw you get hit first. How did you order around RRYN?"

Jaune dropped the facade of his typical happy-go-lucky expression, and it was then that his team noticed the bags under his eyes.

"I…"

He took a breath, exhaling deeply.

"I got trapped under their, the same as you guys. My Aura, it's… big. Really big. Even then it dropped me really, really low. I used my semblance to blast a hole in the corpse and climbed out," Jaune explained.

"I was worried about you guys, I didn't know what to do, and suddenly I did. I just… I…" Jaune felt himself stop, and the words he wanted to say wouldn't, couldn't, didn't leave his mouth.

"Jaune, what did you do, right before it hit? I swear I saw a glowing ball of... " Pyrrha began, and Weiss and Blake both nodded right alongside her.

"A field, something I didn't realise I could do until just then. Kind of a spur of the moment thing." That happy-go-lucky facade had real parts to it, apparently, as his hand scratched the back of his head, something his team was realising was a kind of nervous tic.

"Jaune, what can you do?" Weiss asked, the simple question stumping him.

Silence filled the infirmary as he thought.

"I… don't know. So far, a lot of things. I haven't really found a limit yet, to be honest."

Weiss's eyes weren't the only ones that widened at that.

"What is your semblance?!" She exclaimed.

Jaune went silent once more.

His mother had always said honesty was the best policy.

"I can't tell you."

She had never said he had to tell the whole truth, though, and Jaune had had some time to think about it.

"What?!" Weiss exclaimed again.

"Headmaster Ozpin told me not to speak to anyone about my semblance, Weiss. It's not that I don't trust you guys, I do, it's because you're my teammates. According to the headmaster, my semblance is dangerous in the wrong hands, and he says that you might be hostages!"

The truth Jaune could reveal spilled out of his mouth, nearly acting on its own accord. He'd never been a very good liar, and he was even worse at keeping secrets like this. Not that he'd had many secrets like this, of course, but still.

His team were, as expected, wary of this revelation, but Jaune didn't care. He couldn't keep hiding this from them, and the more he did the more danger they were in.

If they didn't at least know of his capabilities, they'd put themselves in danger for no good reason.

"You dunce."

The heiress's admission shocked even her, but she quickly regained her senses, which had suddenly taken leave. "You should've just told us that in the beginning! I told you to tell me what you could do, after our fight!"

There was that head-scratch again. "I…"

"No, Arc! This is unacceptable! If we're in danger, we deserve to know!" She exclaimed, and both Blake and Pyrrha nodded.

"Besides, Jaune, we are perfectly capable of defending ourselves. Why didn't you just tell us in the first place?" Pyrrha was wearing the most intense look Jaune had seen to date, although in retrospect it wasn't intensive even slightly.

"I was worried, no, scared you wouldn't want me to be your leader anymore. I was scared you'd just move to a different team," the blond muttered, placing a hand on his head.

"Well, this makes the second time you've rescued me, Jaune. I hope it'll be the last."

Jaune raised his head to see those amber eyes looking at him, a small smirk gracing her face.

"Heh. Do you want me to figure out a way for you to pay me back?" Jaune asked, and Blake pelted her leader with the pillow that sat just behind her, on her hospital bed.

"Don't start getting any bright ideas. Just because you live in a dorm with three girls doesn't mean what you think it does!"

Jaune laughed that one up, much to Blake's chagrin. "Three girls? Please. I have seven sisters, you think the three of you scare me?"

Most of what Jaune had said was lost on his three teammates as they heard the words 'seven sisters'.

* * *

The elevator to the headmaster's office wasn't a particularly long ride, but as Jaune stood in it he decided to take advantage of the time he did have, and brought up those neglected notifications.

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Bullet**_ **has reached Level 6!]**

 **[** _ **Battle Cry**_ **has reached Level 7!]**

 **[** _ **Aura Control**_ **has reached Level 6!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Field**_ **now costs 7 MP/s, and has a higher damage threshold!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Bullet**_ **now costs 49 MP to cast, and has an additional projectile!]**

 **[** _ **Aura Control**_ **now offers a stronger, better form of control over your Aura, and now requires less concentration to wield and train!]**

Jaune dismissed the notifications as he stepped out of the elevator, the ding alerting the headmaster to his expected visitor.

The grey-haired man spun in his chair, and faced Jaune, who stopped moving, simply standing in front of the headmaster's desk.

"Well, Mr Arc, it would seem you have a penchant for molding my advice to suit your needs."

Jaune struggled, resisting the urge to reach his hand up to the back of his neck.

"When I said don't tell them, Mr Arc, I suppose I didn't specify, and whilst it wasn't an order, it was a suggestion. Don't take that as my being angry, though, Mr Arc, you did what you thought was right, and that is already proving my original thoughts about you wrong."

Jaune had to mentally force his hand to stay in place.

"However, Mr Arc, don't think for one second that you are free to do as you please with your power. There is an ancient line about great power and responsibility, and I think we both know it well."

His hand strayed ever closed to his neck. Jaune was rapidly losing this battle of wits with his own arm.

"So, Mr Arc. Show me what you can do."

That caught Jaune so off guard his arm dropped back into place against his side. "Come again, sir?"

"I said, Mr Arc, show me what you can do."

Ozpin stood with a speed that belied his age, cane flicking faster than Jaune could blink and striking him on the shoulder.

The teen stumbled back, and he paled as the headmaster stepped forwards, cane twirling in his grip.

"Come along, Mr Arc, I don't remember having all day," Ozpin said, as he came ever closer.

"If that's what you want, sir!" Jaune shouted, leaping backwards.

He was without his weapons, and dressed in his Beacon uniform he wasn't wearing any of his armor, but that didn't mean he was unarmed.

If anything, Jaune was glad to know he would never be weaponless.

Jaune raised his hands in defiance of the approaching man, and willed a _Mana Blast_ into existence, the pure Mana flowing out of his hands in a burst of arcane energy.

Ozpin lifted his cane, and attempted to block the attack, and whilst it was an effective block for him, it still pushed him back, and shattered every window in the office.

The sudden gusts of wind swirled into the room and began scooping up various bits of paperwork, sending them scattering across the horizon, but Jaune was too busy to care about any of that.

The headmaster sent an overhand blow at Jaune, and as he rolled backwards out of the way he looked up to see the point of the cane impact against his chest, driving the air from his lungs and sapping a not-so-insignificant amount of Aura from his body.

"Urgh!" He coughed out, and he retaliated with a well-placed _Mana Bullet_ , but to his surprise two bullets left his hand, and the headmaster reacted to the first.

His cane flicked forwards, and the first projectile dissipated, but the second impacted against the older man's Aura, and Jaune saw the telltale emerald flicker that indicated he'd struck a blow.

Not that he'd get the chance again, as the headmaster saw that as a sign to ramp up his attack.

That damned cane came at him from all sides at once, and Jaune couldn't react to a single one, as it rapidly whittled down his Aura, blow after blow after blow hitting him until it was impossible to tell what was lingering pain and what was fresh.

It even seemed to overwhelm _System Body_ , because the pain would be eradicated, only to be replaced once again.

He hastily cast _Mana Field_ to try and buy himself some time, and whilst it did technically buy him time, the amount was sorely lacking, as the field shattered under the impressive speed the headmaster struck at.

Jaune still had an abundance of Mana to use, though, and even though the headmaster had dropped him to roughly 500 AP, he wasn't about to give up.

Jaune rolled backwards, just out of the way of the onslaught, and quickly cast _Mana Bullet_ , the orbs flying through the air at speeds that rivalled actual bullets, but Ozpin simply battered them away with his cane, unwilling to fall for the same trick twice.

That was what Jaune was hoping for, though, and as the headmaster's cane was in the air, Jaune impacted with Ozpin at full sprint, _Battering Ram_ active as the two soared out the shattered window.

Ozpin's eyes widened almost imperceptibly as Jaune practically straddled him mid-air, the teen's fists clenched, raining down blows on the powerful man.

Fist met face as they fell, only to cease Jaune leaped off the older man to gain some distance, as he crashed into the roof, slightly dazed.

Jaune wasn't done yet, though, as he activated what was effectively his trump card. And he had just enough Mana to do so.

 _Mana Impact_ cast, and Jaune fell through the air, arcane energy pooling around his feet, and he landed in a second, the shockwave scattering roof tiles like the paperwork that still drifted about the sky lazily.

Jaune waited, as the dust cleared, and it was evident to the teen that the headmaster wasn't going to go down so easily.

He was out of Mana now, too, and whilst it was regenerating it wasn't anywhere near fast enough to give him an out, especially considering the cane impacted with his face in that moment and launched Jaune head over heels off the side of the roof, where he fell to the grassy ground that was one of the many courtyards, the last of his Aura shattering on the impact.

"Ow…" Jaune muttered, as the headmaster landed next to him in a feat of dexterity that made him seem much sprightlier than his age would suggest.

"Well done, Mr Arc. You have much to learn, of course, but a valiant first effort. I do wish you hadn't blown my office up, however. Neither one of us wishes to face Professor Goodwitch's wrath, but this time I suppose I shall take the blame. I did instigate the fight, after all."

Jaune groaned in pain from the small crater he'd made in the grass.

"Best get yourself cleaned up, Mr Arc. I believe your team is being let out of the infirmary shortly."

Jaune groaned again, but he set about lifting himself out of the floor.

All he really wished for was one day, a single day, where he wouldn't get attacked.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 500 XP!]**

 **[Thanks to intense training, you gained +1 STR, +1 END and +1 AGI.]**

* * *

"Really, we appreciate the gesture, but was there any particular reason you decided to go so overboard?"

Weiss was rather effective at formulating the teams thoughts into words, as they were swamped by the outright gigantic bouquet of 'get well' flowers that dwarfed Jaune in both height and weight.

AWBN, or at least the three female members of AWBN had just been cleared, and team RRYN had decided to welcome them back in a fashion.

Ren had tried, admirably, to maybe scale back the size of the gift, but facing the might of Ruby, Yang and Nora proved to be far too much for the poor boy, and he'd folded under the pressure like a stack of cards that had been elbow-dropped through a table.

They'd ambushed the recovered teens in the hallway just outside the dorms, partly because that was where they had the most space to talk, and partly because they couldn't actually fit the bundle of flowers into one of the dorm rooms.

Well, either of the dorm rooms, but seeing as the inside of RRYN's dorm room had the beds stacked in unsafe approximations of bunkbeds meant that a single misplaced nudge could, and probably inevitably would, kill someone.

"Thanks, guys, but Weiss is kind of right. Where are we even going to put this?" Jaune was pretty much asking himself more than anyone else.

Maybe it'd fit in his inventory?

"A vase, duh! C'mon, Jaune, how come you didn't figure that out!" Nora exclaimed, and the deadpan stare from the monochromatic partners failed to dissuade the excitable ginger of any notion that may or may not have been present in her mind at the time.

The group decided that the flowers would be more at home in the courtyard, and so they half-carried half-dragged the oversized bouquet outside, where they 'planted' it into the ground.

By planted Jaune meant Nora picked it up and jammed the stems into the dirt with enough force to dig them deep enough that Jaune doubted an angry Beowolf could remove them.

It did mean that the bouquet situation was dealt with, though, so the teen wasn't too concerned.

Once they entered the dorms again, the eight decided to find an empty common room, and set about relaxing.

Of course, that meant different things to each of them, and whilst a few where content to sit back and do nothing, others were more concerned with the past few days they'd missed.

"Jaune, you did take notes in class for us to look at, didn't you?" Weiss asked, and Jaune blanched.

"Uhh…" He began, only for Yang to lean in with a wide grin on her face.

"I'm certain he would've, Ice Queen, but Jauney hasn't actually been to any classes since we got back!" She exclaimed with a malicious amount of enjoyment.

Weiss's glare locked onto Jaune, and his hand went to the back of his head for all of a second.

"I was busy making sure you guys were okay?" Jaune ventured, and Weiss gave it a single moment of consideration.

"If you wanted to make sure we were okay, you should've taken notes for us so we didn't miss classwork!"

Jaune flinched. "Sorry?"

"Ugh," Weiss groaned, before walking over to Ren to ask for his notes.

Jaune turned to his fellow blonde. "Thanks, Yang," He said with just a hint of sarcasm.

Yang gave him a cheeky grin. "No problem, Jauney!"

The eight settled back into the various armchairs, couches and bean-bags that were scattered across the common room.

"So, Jaune, how was the meeting with Professor Ozpin?" Ruby asked, and Jaune gave a nervous chuckle.

There was no sense in hiding what had happened, anyway.

"He challenged me to a fight," Jaune said, and seven heads whipped around to face him, expressions varying from conflicted interest to complete fascination.

"What? Why?" Ruby asked, half in shock.

"He wanted to see what I could do. So I did as he asked," Jaune replied.

"Oh yeah? What'd you do, get thrown through a window?" Yang threw that comment out into the open, and whilst she'd been meaning it as some offhand comment designed to tease the boy, his answer caught her off guard.

"I mean, kind of? I kinda shoulder-charged him through the already broken window, and slammed into him from midair. There's probably still a crater in the dirt from where he tossed me afterwards."

A stunned silence filled the common room, and Jaune felt that urge to scratch the back of his head, which he resisted with all his might.

"We have to spar now! You can't issue a challenge like that and expect no one to answer!" Nora exclaimed, leaping to her feet.

"I didn't issue a challenge?" Jaune, caught off guard, quirked an eyebrow in an approximation of confusion.

"Of course you did, silly! Come on, I'm sure there are plenty of places to fight!"

With that, Nora left the common room they'd barely gotten settled into, dragging Ren with her.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Sparring: Nora Valkyrie**_ **]**

 **[Defeat Nora Valkyrie in single combat, and prove your worth as a combatant!]**

 **[Reward: 1500 XP, Skill Book]**

Well, Jaune wasn't one to refuse a quest.

Although, he was starting to feel like maybe he should start becoming one to refuse a quest, because everyone else was looking at him like he was insane.

"What?"

* * *

 **A fun, smaller chapter, and there isn't much more to say about this, so onto the reviews!**

 **Motherfucker, I wrote out all the responses and then the fucking website logged me out. Pyrrha dies now, that's a guarantee. (It's not.)**

 **someUntel: I'm deliberately leaving damage values out, because there's only so much math I can do before it destroys the integrity of the plot. I'll try my best to balance Jaune's combat style, because melee combat balanced with magical ranged reads and writes so much better than spammed Mana Bullet, unless he's literally mowing his way through hordes of low-leveled Grimm in an attempt to grind.**

 **Alvelvnor: He'll be as broken as post-Vol3 Yang after the loss, :P. Also I've already kind of hinted at new armor in the previous chapter, so we'll see it soon hopefully!**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: I had originally written a rather long-winded response concerning your idea of modifiers, but I honestly cannot remember half of what I wrote, so I'll just summarize with this; Modifiers good idea, however adds more to already complicated story, will list in spreadsheet as weekly sacrifice. Also Titles, coming soon.**

 **infadinityfollower: Crocea Mors will be seeing more screentime soon enough, and upgrades are something I did have somewhat planned. Also we'll only get Eve in either an omake or a oneshot, I doubt just changing the gender of a significant character will be either easy to write or great for traditional Adam fans.**

 **TypedSomeWords: I'm glad you seem to agree with me, and the reasoning you provide is definitely better than anything I came up with. Seriously, I'm pretty much winging all of this (get it! Bird puns!)**

 **And that's all for the second round of the same fucking reviews, god help me this site is actively trying to make me leave it, I swear. For those of you I didn't get too, I did read your stuff, and the first time around I didn't respond because I don't want to inflate the chapter any more than it already is! The second time was because I honestly can't be bothered retyping it all again, and I don't remember most of it. Sanity is fleeting.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**

* * *

 **Thank fuck it didn't make me retype it the third time, Christ alive.**


	11. Insert 'Hammer Time' Joke Here

**NEVERMIND THE AO3, IT WANTS ME TO USE HTML AND I CAN'T BE FUCKED FIGURING OUT DOUBLE SPACING**

* * *

Jaune was terrified, and he wasn't ashamed of that.

Terror was a natural feeling when staring down the business-end of a grenade launcher that could turn into a massive warhammer, at the behest of the frankly impressively strong girl that hefted it, her beaming grin doing nothing to dissuade him of his worry-turned-fear.

"Kick his ass, Nora!" Yang cheered, from the sidelines.

"Prove our team as the better, Arc!" Weiss exclaimed from the other side.

Jaune wasn't sure if it was a good thing or a bad thing Weiss was siding with him.

Pyrrha had stepped up to officiate once again, as the only one of them who had any modicum of experience in professional fighting, and she began to countdown. "3. 2. 1. Begin!"

Jaune yelped as the countdown came to an end and a grenade blew up where he had been standing only moments before, a lucky dodge clearing him of the significant impact, and even more significant shockwave it created.

His luck didn't get better, though, as another of those bright pink projectiles came hurtling towards him, and he reacted instinctively, raising his shield in an attempt to block.

He opened his eyes a full second later to find himself on the ground in a smoking crater, a rapidly approaching Nora bearing down on his collapsed position.

He didn't know what had happened, but as he tried to stand and his head decided to act as woozy as possible before it was nullified by _System Mind_ , he realised that the impact had been way, way too much to try and block without some kind of assistance.

It hadn't cost him too much Aura, thankfully, but at the same time there was only so much he could do to prevent the hammer-wielding terror from breaking through his now apparently meager defense.

Defensive wasn't going to cut it, that much was obvious, but he'd be crippled in a direct melee confrontation, so as Jaune leapt to the side of the arcing hammer blow that struck the blackened tile with enough force to break an Ursa, he readied an attack.

Nora swung at him, hammer whistling as it travelled through the air at speed, but the sudden cessation of motion not only threw her off her game, but also threw her backwards, head over heels, as the full potency of a _Mana Blast_ struck her in the chest at almost point blank range.

It'd cost him a little over quarter of his Mana, but it had been effective, knocking nearly ten percent of her Aura off and sending her back far enough to put him out of range of that warhammer, at least for the time being.

He didn't give Nora time to regain her composure as he decided the smartest decision he could make would be to pepper her with ranged attacks, so he cast _Mana Bullet_ , the newly upgraded spell firing two shots for the cost of one, a mere 49 MP. Two casts had four high damaging bullets impact with the girl, but she wasn't unable to defend herself.

Three of the four were blocked by the relentless spinning of that damned warhammer, and the fourth hit her in the thigh, displacing Aura but not doing anything significant enough to cease the leap that had her hurtling towards him, Magnhild held high above her head.

Jaune barely had time to formulate a plan as the head of the warhammer thudded against his hastily raised shield, and he felt the wind get knocked out of him as his shield was driven point-first into the tile.

Jaune locked eyes with Nora, and the girl gave him a vicious grin as she wound up for a swing against the undefended boy, but Jaune gave up all pretenses of trying to fight fair.

He released his grip on his shield, stepped into her swing, and punched her in the nose.

If Jaune had been terrified before, what he was experiencing now was nothing short of absolute, untainted horror.

The punch didn't do anything. In fact, the girl just grinned harder as the hammer impacted against his undefended side, launching him sideways, fast.

If it weren't for the projected shield that covered the arena he would've penetrated the stands and probably ended up exiting the training hall through an impromptu exit in the form of a Jaune shaped hole in the wall.

As it was, Jaune, even with the inexplicably large amount of Aura he had at his disposal, felt the impact hit him hard enough to completely destroy 50% of it.

It hurt, a lot.

Enough to completely overwhelm _System Body_ for a split-second, and he gasped and wheezed from his prone position at the edge of the ring.

But now, Jaune was determined.

He wouldn't let Nora win, there was absolutely no way. He wouldn't lose. He couldn't lose.

He crawled to his feet slowly, staggering slightly to the side, and as Nora approached, secretly impressed with the teens ability to handle such a powerful blow, he bared his teeth in a loose approximation of a grin.

Nora cocked her head at that, but Jaune didn't give her any more time to ponder what he was grinning at as he rushed her, in a headlong _Sprint_.

Crocea Mors felt light in his hand, and he got close enough to the girl to swing, but she went on the defensive, blocking his blade with the metal handle of Magnhild, but Jaune wasn't done, not by a long shot.

He had a free hand, after all.

He swung again, and as Nora blocked the strike a second time she felt her Aura flare instinctively as she buckled suddenly from the impact.

Jaune, free hand pointed at her stomach, stepped back a pace, the remnant Mana still smoking off the tip of his fingers from the point blank _Spinning Mana Bullet_ he'd practically placed within Nora's unguarded midsection.

That'd burnt a considerable amount of Aura from the girl, who most definitely hadn't been expecting it. Instinctive Aura defense seemed less effective than deliberate, and for that Jaune was incredibly thankful.

Of course, the girl was about to smack him aside again, so he decided to postpone being thankful and instead cast _Mana Field_ , doing his best to back up as he did so.

The light-blue glowing sphere that covered him tried, it really did, but Nora shattered it as if it was a mere afterthought, the impact of the hammer sending up a spray of shattered tiling and dust into the air with such velocity Jaune had no doubt that if here were to be struck a second time not only his Aura but his spine would break from the impact.

Before Jaune had gotten so competitive, Nora was perfectly aware of how much force she needed to apply to shatter his Aura without breaking anything, despite her constant reinforcement of what her favourite hobby was, but now that favourite hobby had rapidly overtaken the rational part of her mind, and Nora wanted to do nothing more than win.

At any cost.

That cost was shaping up more and more to be Jaune's ability to walk, and Nora was more than prepared to cash out.

Jaune gulped as Nora swung again, but he ducked under the swing, nearly going prone in the process, and the warhammer sailed over his head, but Nora's relentless strength made that a moot point as she simply brought the momentum of the weapon under her control as she made to swing once more.

Jaune needed defense, something strong enough to block the attack, but _Mana Field_ wasn't going to cut it, it spread Mana out too far and too wide.

He lifted his hand, congealing Mana in the tips of his fingers, and concentrated, as the hammer closed in, inch by inch passing as if time itself was slowed to a crawl.

A far smaller, flatter plane of Mana appeared in front of his hand, and Nora, intent on smashing it like she did before, felt a shudder run all the way down Magnhild's grip, down her arm, and violently rattle her body.

Jaune's widened eyes stared at the impact point, as did hers, and the two stared in surprise at the floating shield that hovered just out of Jaune's reach, edges cracked from the impact.

There was a notification to go along with the situation, but Jaune decided to file that for later as he took advantage of his situation, a roar escaping his lips as he drained the final bits of Mana he had at his disposal, a joint triggering of _Battle Cry_ and _Mana Slash_ filling the battleground as Crocea Mors swung through the air, unleashing a pure blade of Mana into Nora, hitting the girl lengthways and sending her backwards, Aura dropping rapidly as it absorbed the damage.

"End of the match! Nora's Aura has been dropped into the red, Jaune wins!" Pyrrha exclaimed, no small amount of pride in her voice, and Jaune gave a weak cheer, before dropping to one knee and panting hard.

Exhaustion was becoming something he was getting intimately familiar with, now, and that was dangerous. _Battle Cry_ was inherently useful to him, but it was the side-effect that was the most detrimental to him.

Considering the majority of his anti-person arsenal was magic-based, it meant he spent a lot of Mana per engagement, and his Mana pool, which he'd previously thought to be overkill, now seemed miniscule in comparison to the sheer amount of spells he cast in each battle.

That wasn't even considering his constant affliction of Exhaustion, courtesy of his near failure every single battle. He was practically scraping through every encounter by the barest of margins, and that was starting to get old.

Speaking of encounters, Jaune decided that thinking to himself about his situation could come later, and helping-slash-congratulating Nora would be his first priority.

The girl hadn't lost any of her excitement due to defeat, however, and it honestly seemed like she'd only gained energy, from the looks of things.

Well, now that Jaune looked closer, he realised that wasn't true. Adrenaline was still flowing through the both of them, but Jaune could tell she was more beat up than she let on, as her team surrounded her, issuing congratulations.

Jaune's own team were approaching him, but he made an effort to speak to Nora first. "Good fight, Nora. You really had me on the ropes for a lot of it."

Nora beamed at him. "You did really good, too! You beat me fair and square, and there aren't that many people who can do that, especially when I go all out!"

Jaune involuntarily shuddered at the memory of being struck by that hammer, and decided that repressing that was going to best for his continued sanity.

"I have to admit, Arc, you keep bringing new tricks out of your sleeve at the last possible moment, don't you."

Jaune resisted that permanent head-scratching urge as he stepped back, allowing his team to join the conversation. "I, uh… I don't mean too?"

"It is rather impressive, your ability to counter and attack with such a wide variety. You seem to serve as a perfect counter to most people's fighting styles, Jaune," Pyrrha informed him, and Jaune could tell she was eyeing him with a different look now. Less partnerly and more competitively, which almost made Jaune want to fight Nora again.

"You really think so?" He asked.

"I feel like even I'd struggle to get a grasp on your fighting style, Jaune. Your fight against Weiss proved that you can combat Dustcasters, and just now you proved you can handle strong opponents, so all you really have left to prove yourself against is agile fighters, like Blake or I," Pyrrha explained, Blake nodding along in silent agreement.

"Well, before I prove myself anymore, can I get some sleep? That fight really took a lot out of me," Jaune said with a laugh, and the others joined in his somewhat poor attempt at humour.

They decided to talk and walk, a smart decision considering the devastation they'd left in their wake, and being as far away from the scene of the crime was a good way to avoid both blame and the accompanying wrath of one soon-to-be irate Professor, who'd only just finished repairing a nearly destroyed office at the top of a tower.

* * *

Jaune sighed in relief as the hot water poured over his aching muscles, as he stood calmly in the shower, mentally preparing himself to look at his notifications.

 **[Sparring Complete!]**

 **[You gained 500XP!]**

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Shield (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can project a shield of Mana somewhere around you, about the same size as a standard heater shield. It can be moved anywhere you wish within 5ft of yourself, as long as it is not solid. It can only take a certain amount of damage, and high enough damage will pass straight through. Costs 7 MP/s._ _ **Level 4; XP 68/768.**_ **]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Bullet**_ **has reached Level 7!]**

 **[** _ **Spinning Mana Bullet**_ **has reached Level 4!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Slash**_ **has reached Level 4!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Unarmed Melee**_ **has reached Level 4!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Blast**_ **has reached Level 4!]**

 **[Thanks to intense training, you've gained +1 END, +1 AGI, +1 LCK.]**

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Sparring: Nora Valkyrie**_ **]**

 **[Reward: 1500 XP, 1 Skill Book]**

Well, that was a lot to take in, but the two important parts were the new skill, and the skill book.

Jaune couldn't exactly read a skill book in the shower, or at least he didn't think he could, but he could still look at it in his inventory, so that was what he did, bringing up the menu and checking the details on the item.

 **[Skill Book]**

 **[** _ **Of Old Gods and Storms**_ **]**

 **[ _From what you can tell, this book is a recollection of tales concerning various mythological gods._ ]**

Well, it didn't tell him what the skill he would learn was, but even that was enough to clue him in to something.

No, that was a lie. He'd never heard of this book, and he had no idea what it would contain aside from what the information the System had told him. It sounded interesting, though, so maybe he'd read it once he got into his bed.

It wouldn't be lights out for a little while, anyway, so it wasn't that he was lacking time.

More importantly, once he'd washed himself, he was going to check his stats. It'd been a little while since he'd done that, and he felt he was deserving of a little update on himself.

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Novice]**

 **[Level: 8]**

 **[XP: 5552/6144]**

 **[HP: 220/220 (1.1/s)]**

 **[SP: 220/220 (4.4/s)]**

 **[MP: 200/200 (2/s)]**

 **[AP: 1760/1760 (0.44/s)**

 **[STR: 20]**

 **[END: 22]**

 **[AGI: 15]**

 **[INT: 20]**

 **[WIS: 20]**

 **[CHA: 12]**

 **[LCK: 12]**

 **[Skill Points: 25]**

 **[Lien: 115]**

Jaune knew what his meters said, he checked them rather regularly, but it was still a bit of a shock to see that his charisma and luck were so low still. He'd have thought himself pretty lucky thus far, and somehow becoming friends with seven people, six of which were girls way out of his league, he'd have thought his charisma would be way, way higher.

But they weren't the most important stats to him, not at this moment. Intelligence and wisdom were significantly more important, almost exclusively due to their ability to effect his Mana, something that needed improving.

Jaune had twenty-five skill points available to spend, but he didn't want to spend them all, as having a backup would be important just in case a situation arose where he needed a certain amount of a stat.

So, with all that in mind, Jaune invested ten points into INT, and ten into WIS, with the hope it would improve his chances in a fight.

What Jaune was rewarded with was unexpected, but most definitely not unwelcome.

 **[For reaching 25 INT, you have been awarded the perk Mana Tank]**

 **[For reaching 25 WIS, you have been awarded the perk Mana Cognition]**

Jaune poked each of them, intent on learning exactly what they meant.

 **[Mana Tank]**

 **[Your access to the existence of magic and mana has increased, doubling your maximum MP pool.]**

 **[Mana Cognition]**

 **[Your understanding of the flow of mana has increased, doubling your MP regen rate.]**

Oh.

Oh!

That was undoubtedly excellent, as Jaune now had access to 600 MP total, with a regen rate of 6 MP per second.

Well, that had solved at least some of his problems concerning his rather life-threatening situations he'd been subjected to the past few weeks.

It also confirmed that he got specialised perks at or beyond the twenty-fifth digit of a certain stat. That meant when STR, END, AGI, CHA and LCK reached twenty-five he'd get a perk. What those perks would be Jaune didn't know, but he was interested in finding out, that was for sure.

He'd tripled his Mana capabilities now, though, so that was good. He was actually pretty close to being able to constantly cast _Mana Field_ or _Mana Shield_ , to the point where he'd never be without a shield. It was kind of pointless at the moment, because not only would it prevent him from being able to move properly, but he'd also have no Mana regeneration, and both of the spells were quite weak at the moment, as evidenced by the fact that Nora easily broke the much larger _Mana Field_ with a single swing, and _Mana Shield_ had nearly broken from a half-strength blow that she'd delivered as a way to get back into a position for a more powerful wind-up.

Other than all that, though, he was pretty ecstatic about his situation.

Of course, he didn't have much more time to muse over his good fortune as a knock sounded on the bathroom door, indicating that he'd spent far too much time inside it, and that the three girls waiting outside for their turn were about to give him some more violent encouragement.

Naturally, he towelled himself down as fast as humanly possible, before changing into his sleeping gear and stepping out into the dorm room, quickly stepping over to his bed and laying down.

He watched with mild interest as Weiss and Blake silently argued as to who was going to have the next shower only to see the two completely miss Pyrrha quietly sneak past the bickering pair.

The door shut to the stunned silence of the two, and Jaune's light chuckle. They glared at him, and he surrendered immediately, reaching under his bed and discreetly pulling the skill book out of his inventory, pretending he'd retrieved it from underneath his mattress.

The title hadn't changed since he'd last checked, unsurprisingly, but he looked it over just the same, eyeing the detail in the artwork that the cover so valiantly presented.

It was like a giant mural, painted so many years ago that the edges of the very wall it had been painted on had worn and chipped away, leaving crumbled marble in their place.

It was a photograph, one Jaune had never seen before, but that wasn't even remotely surprising, as Jaune didn't spend much time looking at photographs. It did peak his interest, however, and the concept that ancient ruins existed out in the wilderness was accentuated by the first sentence the book presented.

' _The wilderness of Mistral is untamed, dangerous, and full of ancient structures from times long past. Of such ruins, many still have their stories written down, whether in books much like this one or in other, more atypical methods, such as the mural on the cover of this very text, but regardless of which way they were recorded they all share one key feature. A plot, a hero, a story to tell. This text compiles many of the discovered stories, and I have personally spent months making sure they were as accurate as they are entertaining.'_

It was a note from the author, and Jaune sat back, wiggling his rear to get more comfortable, and began to read the first story.

* * *

He hadn't gotten a skill.

He had, however, quite enjoyed the story the book had presented to him. It had been almost an hour, now, and there wasn't much longer till the team would turn in for the evening, but Jaune wanted to keep reading, and so when he flipped to the next page, he realised something that was starting to become a common theme with skill books.

The entire chapter was blank, and as he flipped through page after page once again believing it to be a printing error he suddenly found himself on the third story.

That was… annoying. He'd actually wanted to read the second story, but he guessed that a skill was a reward worthy of the sacrifice of a part of his evening entertainment.

The corresponding notifications and confirmation boxes appeared when he attempted to learn the skill, and he accepted them all without a second thought, and the book glowed a light blue as he absorbed the knowledge.

He blinked back the effects of the already nullified headache as he regained his senses, and three pairs of eyes stared at him.

"Oh."

'Oh' was right, because Jaune had forgotten that the three members of his team were still awake, and very much aware that Jaune had just made a book glow.

"Jaune, what did you just do?"

The sentiment, initially put forward by Blake, was quickly reinforced by the questioning glances Pyrrha and Weiss were giving him.

"I, um… tried putting my Aura in the book?" Jaune ventured, a convenient excuse that was not at all convincing springing forth from his lips, courtesy of _Deceitful Speech_.

Orbs of amber, crystal and emerald locked with his own, and even he wasn't dense enough not to notice that they didn't believe him.

But, he decided to double down on the excuse regardless.

"I tried using my semblance on it, just to see what it would do."

The stares became less questioning and more confused.

"Jaune, what would it do anyway? What possible situation could there be where you would need to use your semblance on a book?" Weiss asked, wondering if her leader hadn't gotten more injured from Nora's warhammer than he initially let on.

"Uh… In case we're attacked by books? Or fighting in the library?" Jaune answered, internally cringing at the words that came flying out of his mouth of their own accord.

The second excuse was somewhat reasonable. The first was ridiculous. Jaune didn't know what to say for himself, except that maybe he should just shut up and not lie anymore, but that notion was dissuaded by the unbidden memory of the Headmaster's warning.

"I… No, you know what, Arc? I don't care. You do whatever you want with your semblance, it'll probably work anyway. I don't even want to start getting into the details of whatever your semblance is, especially after what you said. Just, don't be so blatant, please?" Weiss addressed him directly, before rolling onto her side in her bed and promptly attempting to go to sleep, hoping to have forgotten the strange incident in the morning.

"Uh, yeah, right. Will do. Sleep well, everyone."

The rest of AWBN decided to pack it in then and there, getting comfortable in the evening moonlight as the lamps were switched off.

They had a busy morning up ahead, with a planned excursion to the Forever Fall in the company of Professor Goodwitch, and that wasn't even what Jaune was dreading.

No, Jaune was dreading the skill he'd just learned.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Elemental Infusion (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now infuse spells with elements! Elementally infused spells will do increased damage, and have unique effects based on the element infused. Increases cast cost by 10%._ **]**

 **[Subskills: Lightning Infusion]**

He was going to electrocute himself.

* * *

 **A fun chapter, in which Jaune gets smacked around, smacks Nora around, and then realizes his terribly ability to lie will inevitably get him caught. Better improve that Charisma, buddy, lest you be as dense as Canon Jaune.**

 **Anyway, Elemental Infusion is my new method of getting around having three-hundred-thousand different spell variants, because that would be infuriating. Also lightning, storms, old gods and Nora, what a wacky unheard-of combination that has absolutely nothing to do with anything at all, whatsoever.**

 **Now, reviews!**

 **jbrew123: You are right, he did only just get told. However, Jaune feels that the more they yell at him the more they get their anger out of their system, so to speak, and he still technically should've or could've told them about his semblance way before Ozpin warns him not to, but he instinctively kept it a secret much like Pyrrha still is with hers. It's just because of the constant onslaught of circumstances that he accepts that it might be partially his fault he didn't warn them of the danger they might've been in, potentially.**

 **Master DK: This one's a little longer, but I did write it in only a day. Work, man, it piles up fast. At least I didn't miss this week! As for skill increases and pacing, the best I can do for advice is to look into actual RPG game theory. My original XP pacing was screwed to say the least, and it wasn't until I started looking into the theory behind it that I realised exactly what I needed for this to pace it well, so it fit with the plot. The best you can do is make sure you know where your story is going before you try and pace the skills along with it, and experiment with certain formulas to see how fast or slow a character can progress. As for the average huntsman or huntress's stats, I decided that every person reaches maturity (17 years old) with 10 in all stats, at perfectly average, with no experience. So a regular person might be anywhere from 1 to 30 depending on what they do with their life, but a hunter will be higher due to extreme training, and such. I'll go into more detail when Observe levels more, when Jaune can see Stats pages for other characters.**

 **Remzal Von Enili: I'd love to know the origin of that wizard, because despite it sounding familiar I can't quite place it. Glad to see Jaune is the second funniest, though, I've always found his bumbling to be rather endearing.**

 **WonderDildo: Great name, and yeah, I figured breaking up action with blocks of numbers would detract from what is supposed to be a fast-paced scene. Kind of like talking in a fight, it doesn't fit very often.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Sifting through porn shouldn't be that difficult, I can read pretty fast :P As for the rest of AO3, I made an account when you left this review, and I will be uploading chapters up on there soon enough, for those who would rather read there. I'll put that in a little notification at the top of the chapter, which by now you've already seen, so writing this is rather pointless. Oh well. Also hooray, drafts!**

 **merendinoemiliano: I hate to disappoint, but I don't think we'll be getting Arkos in Systema. I'm going to do some less common ships when I do get to that, and some more common ones too. I won't make any guarantees, though.**

 **TypedSomeWords: Instantaneous Eyeball Detonation, the IED. It's super-lethal, and it's the skill Jaune gets next. I'm kidding, though with Lightning that might just be what happens!**

 **Beowolfalien: There won't be parties, because despite it being similar to the Gamer this is a technically original system. Also he does have the summoning ritual available, but he hasn't looked into it because he doesn't own any components yet. Once he starts getting some Dust I imagine it'll occur to him to check it out.**

 **And that's it for reviews this week, sorry to all of you I didn't get to, but I still love you, trust me! (There are so many of you now, I don't know how to handle this!)**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	12. Bears and Wolves and Blonds, Oh My!

**Apologies for no chapter last week, life has a way of making me busy in short yet intense bursts. Enjoy this week's slightly larger chapter!**

* * *

"Alright students, considering the abnormally large influx of Grimm as of recently, I want all of you to be completely aware of your surroundings, and in perfect understanding about your capabilities as yourself and as a team. Do not pick fights you cannot win, and make sure you stay vigilant. Now, take your jars, and begin filling them with Red Sap!"

AWBN and RRYN did as Professor Goodwitch instructed, grabbing a jar each, and setting out for a nice open clearing somewhere away from the veritable horde of other students.

 **[** _ **System Body**_ **has nullified effects of Red Sap Allergy!]**

Jaune instinctively rubbed his nose when he read that, despite the actual contents of the notification. He didn't know he'd had an allergy to Red Sap.

Although, he technically didn't now anyway.

Now wasn't the time to consider allergic possibilities, especially considering how deep into enemy territory he and his team was.

Time for some excellent leadership from the one and only leader of AWBN.

"Alright AWBN! Let's get this sap, and get out of here as soon as we can!" Jaune exclaimed.

Blake and Weiss dead-stared at him, and Pyrrha uttered a giggle, tinged with mild embarrassment.

"Or… we could just tap the tree in this clearing, and sit around until the jars are full," Jaune said, less excited.

"That would be preferable, yes. As the leader, I assume you will be sapping the trees?" Weiss asked.

Jaune opened his mouth to object, but decided against it, instead taking a hold of the jars and drawing his sword, stabbing it into the trunk of the nearest, largest tree.

Red, viscous liquid began dripping from the wound, and Jaune quickly placed one of the jars underneath, the glass slowly but steadily filling up.

Now, he was going to do something he'd been looking forward to for a little while now. Something he'd been preparing for quite a while.

A silent _Observe_ was uttered, the teen's eyes locked on that red gel.

 **[Red Sap]**

 **[A sap found in certain trees amongst the Forever Fall, it's red colour is a product of the unique environment it is found in. It gives off a faint sweet scent that Grimm are strangely attracted to. It is used as a common ingredient in healing potions.]**

Well, that was nice to know. Jaune would have to inquire about getting a few more jars of this.

That wasn't what he'd been preparing for though.

 **[A skill has leveled!]**

 **[** _ **Observe**_ **has reached level 5!]**

According to all his research, which actually meant he'd just paid attention for once, when a skill reached level five, there was a significant chance it'd gain a new effect, or something along those lines.

His theory was proven correct in the worst possible way.

 **[** _ **Observe**_ **has unlocked the** _ **Relationship Meter**_ **!]**

Why.

Why was Jaune the subject of such ridicule, such hatred, such pure universal maliciousness.

This had to be his sister's doing, one of them. Olive, most likely.

Her addiction to dating games had to be the reason he was being subjected to this.

 **[People now have relationship meters when observed, which indicate their relation with you.]**

Jaune was so annoyed he stopped watching the jar, and he was snapped back to reality as he felt cold liquid slowly drip over his fingers.

"Eugh, cold." Jaune, ever fluent, uttered, as he shook his hand, attempting to get rid of the sap.

"How observant. What a remarkable leader you make," Weiss remarked from her seat on a nearby root.

"Well, by all means, feel free to do this," Jaune replied, as he swapped the jars, placing the first on the ground next to the rest.

He wasn't going to check the relationship meter on anyone. It was just stupid.

Dumb.

Idiotic, even.

It also seemed like a major breach of privacy, but that was the secondary reason.

So what if he was curious.

So what if said curiosity was clawing at his forethoughts, playing devil's advocate.

He refused.

He wouldn't do it.

He wouldn't, damn it.

Jaune caved, _Observe_ triggered at the behest of the wielder, and he learned exactly what he'd feared.

 **[Weiss Schnee]**

 **[Huntress-In-Training, Level 12]**

 **[Relationship: +5/100 (Teammate)]**

Well, at least his relationship with Weiss was positive.

It wasn't very positive, but it was a start.

Considering how they'd met, he could see that he was still leagues ahead of a lot of people.

He'd look at Blake and Pyrrha's later, he'd invaded enough privacy already, and instead turned his attention back to the sap that slowly trickled down.

Jaune whiled away the time it took for the second and third jars to fill, idly entertaining passing thoughts for anywhere from moments to minutes at a time, before his attention was absorbed by the strangest whistling sound.

It almost sounded like a glass jar filled with red sap that had been hurled at him and impacted against his back. In fact, were that to happen, there would be no way for him to be prepared for it, and it would shatter against his unprotected, clothed back, glass shards cutting into his body and the red sap thoroughly drenching him.

That was what happened, of course.

The injuries bothered him for only a split-second, before _System Body_ kicked in and eradicated both the injuries and the pain, but there was no skill to remove red sap from him.

The grunt of pain and the shattering of glass had attracted the attention of his team, of course, and whilst they were armed and wary, Jaune waved them down.

"Don't worry, I'm fine. Probably just Cardin making a poor attempt at revenge," Jaune said, in an effort to dissuade his team from creating a new clearing with the amount of hostility they were openly showing.

If trees could wither and die from the intent, they'd surely have done so already.

"That buffoon! We should find him, and give him a piece of our minds!" Weiss exclaimed, fuming.

"For once, I'm in agreement," Blake said with a nod.

"I wouldn't mind having a friendly chat," Pyrrha said, a frown on her face.

"Honestly, leave it. We've got more important things to focus on than fighting other students. Like the horde of Grimm headed our way right now," Jaune spoke with authority, the tone in his voice snapping the heads of the remaining members of AWBN towards him.

"What?" The three chorused, unexpectedly confused.

"Red Sap has an attractive sweetness to its scent, it'll lure nearby Grimm to our position. Small amounts of the sap leaking out wouldn't attract many, nor would our sealed jars, but this much, all over a moving target with Aura?" Jaune explained.

He was soon proven right, of course, when a cluster of Beowolves burst out of the trees on the other side of the clearing.

The girls prepared themselves, but Jaune held up a hand, as the other reached out and withdrew Crocea Mors from the trunk. "I'll handle these. Cover my flank."

With the rather unexpected order coming from their leader, the girls had no choice but to watch warily as Jaune stepped closer to the Beowolf pack, shield deploying from sheath mode just in time to block the first strike.

The first Beowolf that had attacked found it's arm lopped off, and with a howl it leaped even closer, but the howl never finished as Jaune bashed it in the face with his shield and spun, the arcing blade of Crocea Mors serving to both decapitate it and keep any of the others away.

The lupine Grimm weren't very old, nor were they very smart, and as Jaune kept his guard up, occasionally striking out with a stab or a sweeping slice, the Grimm found that they had no opportunities to get the better of him, and so resorted to simply throwing themselves at him in the hope that they would crush him with sheer body mass.

Of course, Jaune was light enough on his feet to be able to maintain movement, and as the Beowolf bodies began to pile up, disintegrating at a slow enough speed that more could be added to the pile before the first had gone, Jaune found himself at ease.

That, in and of itself, was odd. Normally, he wouldn't expect someone fighting for their life to be at ease, but here he was, slicing his way through an entire pack of Beowolves, his mind at rest.

Stab, block, slice, sidestep, block, stab, bash, stab, block, backstep.

The only thing in his mind was to simply do as he felt the blade should, and he let it lead him in the waltz that he danced.

They were low level, low intelligence enemies, things he didn't need to spare additional thought.

They were, in a word, fodder.

He'd worry about that fact once he was done with them, of course. Where there was fodder there was a tougher fight waiting, that was basically the rules of both video games and the universe as a whole.

So once he finished with the stragglers, he turned and faced the final Beowolf, whose bone plating indicated that he was the Alpha.

The Alpha of the pack Jaune had just so effortlessly slaughtered.

Were it a creature capable of reasonable thought, Jaune was sure it would've surrendered right then and there, but this was a simple Alpha Beowolf.

It charged at Jaune, and Jaune decided to try something new.

A Lightning-Infused _Mana Slash_ hit the Grimm in the midsection, frying charcoal-coloured flesh and giving the air that toxic smell, whilst simultaneously making Jaune recoil slightly as the now-corpse shook, twitched and juddered in a posthumous mockery of a nervous system on the receiving end of a bad seizure.

Okay, so that was good to know. Lightning was really, really effective on flesh. Not that regular Mana wasn't also effective, but still, a Lightning-Infused spell was no laughing matter.

Jaune heard the telltale sound of a rifle firing, and seeing as the only one on his team to wield such a weapon was Pyrrha, Jaune turned to face her, only to watch her take down an Ursa Minor with ease, the fluidity of her movements impressing not only him, but Blake and Weiss too.

Which wasn't all that surprising, seeing as he relied on being the heavier fighter, and his three teammates were dextrous agility-based combatants.

They could dodge hits all day, and he could tank them, but reverse their roles, and they'd be in some danger.

Of course, that was only if the enemy managed to land a hit in the first place.

Weiss's rapier pierced the head of a straggling Beowolf, and Blake quickly dismembered another, before Jaune turned back to his side of the clearing as _Danger Sense_ activated, warning him.

Not a moment too late, thankfully, as an entire tree came sailing out of the forest and smacked the ground behind Jaune, who'd had the wherewithal to duck underneath it.

What emerged was not a Beowolf. It was something even worse, something bigger and spikier than the Ursa Pyrrha had so skillfully killed.

As Jaune _Observed_ the behemoth of a Grimm, Pyrrha, Blake and Weiss turned to face the monster, they too shocked at the size.

Out of the forest's red leaves it lumbered.

 **[Ursa Epic]**

 **[Grimm, Level 10]**

 **[BOSS]**

Jaune gulped.

* * *

There was a saying used to exaggeratedly describe Grimm; 'It's the size of a house!'

This was no exaggeration.

The Ursa Epic towered over the four, it's intimidating size proving to be only the first straw. The colossal spines that stood out from its back were pockmarked with splinters and cracks, and the beast's flesh was coated in scars, but instead of making it seem like it was already injured, it instead served to function as a threat.

This Ursa had fought many an opponent, and won.

It decided its approach hadn't served as enough intimidation, though, so it solved that problem with a roar that was loud enough to slide Jaune back a foot in the dirt, his heels digging into the ground as he attempted to stay upright.

The claws on its paws were coated in a pale, flaky crimson that shedded into patches of similarly coloured powder, and its red, beady eyes stared at the four with the malicious intent that only a Grimm that size could fully muster.

All in all, Jaune was perfectly within acceptable reason to feel as if he was quaking in fear.

 _System Mind_ was working overtime to keep him calm, and for that he was thankful, although he'd put off said thank-you until he'd either fought the beast, fled from the beast, or died. Whichever came first.

"Jaune, what do we do!?" Pyrrha shouted, backing up step by step as she pointed the rifle-form of her weapon at the Ursa Epic.

Jaune, being the closest to the massive ursine Grimm, decided that backing up was probably a good idea, considering he assumed he didn't have all that much time before the Grimm decided to see if he tasted any better than the previous victims.

It stared down at him, and Jaune watched it plant it's forepaws against the ground carefully.

"We need to retreat, and get the Professor! There's no way we can kill this thing ourselves!" Jaune answered Pyrrha's query, as he carefully handled his sword in his hand.

The Ursa Epic decided, then and there, that it would prove the young leader's point.

A single lunge, powerful hind legs pushing it further than Jaune thought possible, and the Ursa Epic was right upon him, massive paw swinging towards his body at speeds that seemed to break the very stereotype the Ursa had upon them.

Jaune lifted his shield and cast both _Mana Shield_ and _Mana Field_ in an attempt to simply survive, and as the paw impacted against both of his Mana defenses and against his shield, he realised that it didn't do all that much to prevent the Ursa Epic from hitting him.

He knew that especially well when his undefended body impacted against a tree trunk, knocking the wind out of him as he left a Jaune-shaped indent in the log.

"Ow…" He wheezed, raising himself to one knee to survey the situation as it was.

All he saw was Weiss, Blake and Pyrrha opening fire on the Ursa Epic, which seemed to view the projectiles as mild annoyances than any kind of grievance.

Jaune knew that they needed backup, and so he withdrew his Scroll, flipping through his contacts until he reached Ruby.

First ring, second ring…

"C'mon, Ruby, pick up!" Jaune muttered, as he stumbled towards his team.

"Jaune? What's up?" Ruby's voice, tinny through the speaker of the Scroll, was a welcome sound to Jaune.

"Ruby! AWBN's under attack, it's a massive Ursa! Get Goodwitch, and use my Scroll's GPS to find us!" Jaune exclaimed, before grabbing Weiss by the back of her jacket and wrenching her backwards, just in time to avoid the massive paw that smashed the ground right where she'd been standing.

Of course, the impact didn't have zero casualties, and as Jaune regained his balance, he noticed his Scroll on the ground, in splinters.

He could only hope Ruby was clever enough to track one of the other Scrolls of AWBN, because he was going to need a new one.

As for the fight, though, Jaune decided now would be a good time to start dishing out Mana.

His fingertips crackled with arcane energy as he willed a _Spinning Mana Bullet_ into existence, but the colour quickly changed, becoming a glowing yellow, arcs of lightning sparking off, and he released it, the _Lightning-Infused Spinning Mana Bullet_ spiralling through the air and impacting against the shoulder of the Ursa Epic.

Finally, it seemed like Jaune had done some kind of damage, as the beast reared up on its hind legs and roared, yellow bolts of lightning jumping around its body as it seemed to spasm.

 **[You have inflicted Paralysis!]**

Well, that was beneficial. Jaune didn't know how long Paralysis would last, but he was quick to take advantage of it, and amongst the staccato fire of Blake and Pyrrha, and the whistling of energy projectiles from Weiss, Jaune charged forward, channeling _Lightning-Infused_ Mana into the palm of his hand.

Once close enough, he noticed the Ursa Epic break free of the Paralysis, but he had already reached the point he'd needed to, and he _Jumped_ up, unleashing a _Lightning-Infused Mana Blast_ straight into the chest of the Grimm.

The blast was powerful, extremely so, but the damage it dealt was like a bucket of water to a pool.

That didn't mean it didn't hurt the Ursa Epic, though, and a second roar escaped the beast as it staggered backwards, massive foot planting into the dirt with a thud.

Jaune followed up the blast by landing in a roll, drawing Crocea Mors from the top of his shield, and slashing at the tendons on the leg the Grimm had planted, his steel blade unable to penetrate deep, but enough to put some pain into the muscle.

Pyrrha had pushed forward, seeing as how her bullets had so far been ineffectual against the thick hide, and the xiphos form of her weapon slashed on the other side of the leg.

Blake and Weiss joined the melee, Weiss creating a series of glyphs for Blake to use as steps, the raven-haired girl rushing up and using her natural agility to slice away chunks from the wound on the Ursa Epic's shoulder, where the _Spinning Mana Bullet_ had impacted.

Weiss made sure Blake always had somewhere to land if she was shaken loose, and as Pyrrha and Jaune worked away at the leg, the Ursa wasn't given an opportunity to counter-attack, constantly off-balance and assaulted on all sides.

That wasn't going to last, though. There was only so much AWBN could do before they would run out of energy, and the Ursa Epic was most definitely an endurance fighter.

They'd lose a battle of attrition without a doubt, even with Jaune's massive MP regen he'd just recently acquired. He might've been able to last as long as the Grimm, or at least get close, but Pyrrha, Blake and Weiss were not going to be able to get anywhere near.

Jaune knew his team weren't endurance fighters. In fact, he might've been the only endurance fighter out of both AWBN and RRYN, unless you counted Nora.

Nobody was quite sure what Nora would classify as.

Speaking of.

A massive explosion rocked the Ursa Epic's head, and the one and only person capable of that landed next to Jaune, a wide smile on her face.

"Hey Jauney! Where'd you find this one?" She asked, twirling her warhammer.

Jaune stepped back a step and drove the point of Crocea Mors into the steadily widening wound he'd been creating on the Ursa Epic's leg, before answering. "He kinda just showed up, you know? Did Ruby get Goodwitch?"

Nora nodded, sporting a manic grin. "Yeah, the professor seemed real scary, too. Sounds like she's real mad!"

Jaune laughed. "Well, we could really use some help breaking this thing's leg. You in?"

The manic grin widened impossibly. "You had me at break a leg!"

With the conversation out of the way, Nora wound back and swung, her warhammer impacting against the previous wound with a meaty smack, and the black flesh rippled.

The Ursa Epic gave a massive roar, and the roar was joined by a loud crack as a massive chunk of black flesh was shredded, raining the dark ichor all over the ground.

Ruby with Crescent Rose, no doubt. There was only one weapon in Beacon that fired that high a caliber, Jaune knew.

Nora wound back for a swing, and Jaune held up a hand for pause, before driving Crocea Mors into the wound once more, releasing his grip.

The blade stuck in, and Nora got the idea quickly, as she quickly became the hammer to Jaune's chisel, driving Crocea Mors hard enough into the flesh that the tip pierced the other side in a burst of smoke that had Pyrrha release a small yelp of surprise.

It was then that Jaune grabbed the handle, which was surprisingly undamaged, and channeled Mana into it.

This was going to be interesting.

He pulled the sword upwards, and the searing smell of burnt Grimm flesh filled the air as he carved through the weaker flesh of the inside of the leg, before finishing the upward swing, the arcing yellow energy of a _Lightning-Infused Mana Slash_ carving up through the vulnerable inner meat of the leg.

"Alright, we need to pull back, I don't want to be stuck underneath another giant Grimm!" Jaune ordered, and Nora and Pyrrha obliged, quickly backing up from the Ursa Epic as it staggered backwards once more, balance as ruined as its leg.

Blake landed on the ground, and Jaune noticed that Yang did the same, the two rolling to a stop after leaping from one of Weiss's glyph-platforms. Weiss herself looked winded, and it was obvious she'd expended a significant amount of energy.

Ren and Ruby were the last two to arrive, Ren acting the scout to Ruby's sniper.

The ninth member to arrive was Professor Goodwitch, who strode out of the forest with a glare more furious than any Jaune had seen before.

This Ursa Epic was a personal affront to Goodwitch's teaching efforts, and it was about to be taught a lesson.

A wave of her riding crop had massive tree trunks lift themselves out of the dirt, and the Ursa Epic, already wounded, suddenly felt the assault of a barrage of log-spears, battering its body and knocking it onto its back.

Goodwitch saw the opportunity, and another wave of her riding crop had one of the trees splinter, the end sharpening to a point, and a moment passed before she stuck the tree-sized stake into the chest of the Ursa Epic, pinning it to the ground through its torso.

It wasn't the end of it, though. Jaune could tell, and whilst everyone else relaxed, Jaune gripped Crocea Mors even harder, charging forward and jumping, traversing the distance between where he'd been standing and the Ursa Epic in a few moments, and he could tell everyone was watching him.

A _Lightning-Infused_ _Mana Impact_ pooled at Jaune's feet, and he slammed into the Ursa Epic's head with incredible velocity, looking to the world like a bolt of lightning.

The burst of smoky-black ichor that sprayed into the air around him simply added to the dramatic effect.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 41866 XP!]**

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 12!]**

 **[+20 Skill Points!]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: One-Handed Melee**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Shield**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Jump**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Sixth Sense**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Spinning Mana Bullet**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Slash**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Aura Control**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Impact**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Field**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Blast**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Shield**_ **has reached Level 11!]**

 **[Thanks to intense physical activity and practised leadership, you gain +2 END, +2 STR and +1 CHA.]**

 **[For performing a finishing blow on a boss, you have been awarded a skill and +3 CHA.]**

 **[Skill Awarded!]**

 **[** _ **Finishing Blow (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can perform a finishing move on a debilitated enemy, defeating them in a singular final attack. Costs 50 SP._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

Jaune gaped at the notifications that had popped up, even as he shook his feet clear of the chunks of black, fleshy sludge that clumped on his shoes.

Honestly… Jaune was going to need an extra long shower to sort through all of that.

Now, though, he had to leave the giant corpse. An idea that was a lot harder in practise than it was in theory.

Jaune sheathed Crocea Mors and stowed the sheath back on his belt, before gripping the sides whatever remnants of the skull were left behind, and climbing out.

He couldn't tell, but the entire clearing stank of crisp, burnt Grimm flesh, and the only reason he couldn't tell was because he was completely submerged in the scent so deep it had effectively killed his sense of smell.

It was apparent that everyone else could smell it, though, because the faces of the eight figures that stared at him, jaws agape in shock, quickly scrunched up as he got closer.

Lightning cooked things really fast, unsurprisingly.

"Mr Arc. I have many questions, but I believe I'll just settle for one, for now. What in the Brothers were you thinking?"

Jaune fought the urge to scratch the back of his head valiantly, but it was a doomed effort from the start. "Uh…"

Luckily for Jaune, his team were quick to jump to his defense.

"Professor, this isn't any of AWBN's fault. The Ursa was lured here by the sap!" Pyrrha exclaimed.

"And how much sap did you think you needed?" Goodwitch asked, quirking an eyebrow.

"It wasn't our sap, Professor. Team CRDL threw a jar at Jaune, and coated him in it. That, plus Jaune's abnormally large Aura, attracted the Ursa," Weiss explained.

Goodwitch sighed, before resuming her normal, stern expression. "All of you, to the Bullhead. The other teams have retrieved enough sap, you don't need to retrieve yours. Just…"

She paused, and finally locked eyes with Jaune. "Please, for the love of all things, take a shower."

Jaune gave a nervous chuckle in response to that, promptly losing the second head-scratch war of the day.

As Goodwitch stalked off, Jaune swore he could hear her muttering something about blond hair.

* * *

"Well, I can definitely say that smell was un _bear_ able!" Yang joked, as the eight stood in the Bullhead, the pilot having sealed off the cockpit to escape the majority of the scent of burned Ursa flesh.

"Yang, please. One more pun, and I'll leave you behind," Ruby deadpanned, staring half-heartedly at her sister.

"Sis, you wouldn't! You couldn't _bear_ to be without me!" Yang exclaimed, unable to prevent a massive smile presenting itself.

"Yang, I'm warning you!" Ruby exclaimed.

"C'mon, Rubes, you know that's a _bear_ faced lie! You wouldn't throw me off!" Yang joked once more, to the collective groan of the others.

"What, is this too em _bear_ assing?" Yang said, as Ruby tried to cover her sister's mouth.

"Yang, stop!" Ruby begged.

"Aw, Ruby, don't be so _grizzly_!" Yang said with glee as Ruby tried her best to clamp Yang's mouth shut.

"You think you can stop me, but I've _bear_ ly started!" Yang cackled, and Ruby finally managed to stop her by driving her elbow into her older sister's stomach.

Jaune watched it all go down from his seat furthest away, partly because he needed to think, and partly because nobody could stand to sit that close to him.

Of course, he couldn't navigate any of his notifications whilst in such a public place, but he could think about what he was going to do about Cardin.

That idiot, and that was a light sentencing, had endangered AWBN significantly, with or without deliberate intent. Jaune needed to deal with him personally, but he didn't want to. It was obvious that Beacon staff weren't interested in petty squabbles between teams, so Jaune would have to take care of the problem himself.

Although, it wouldn't be that hard to intimidate Cardin, if that was the method Jaune decided on. He'd just killed a giant Grimm, and despite it not being single-handedly, Cardin didn't know that. He did know that there was an emergency, and that AWBN and RRYN had been sent back early.

If that didn't make him at least worry, there was something wrong with him.

Alternatively, Jaune could try to appeal to Cardin's more reasonable side, were that to exist. Of course, that was much less likely to work.

Sometimes the diplomatic approach was the best approach, but Jaune was adamant that this was not one of those times.

Of course, first he'd need to clean himself up. His shoes were still coated in slowly dissolving black muck, and if they weren't ruined he'd be surprised.

What he could be thankful for was the things the boss had dropped.

First and foremost, five thousand Lien. That was more money than Jaune had ever held in his entire life, so he was a little excited about that.

The second was a cluster of Ursa Hide that Jaune had recovered.

The third was an Ursa Epic Spine, and that was both incredible and terrifying.

The fourth and final item was a small metal box with a lock, that Jaune hadn't seen a key for.

All in all, a good haul. Plus, he'd killed twelve Beowolves, so he was only one away from ranking up his title.

"Well, I hate to be the _bear_ er of bad news, Jaune, but I think AWBN needs to have a team discussion after we've cleaned ourselves up," Pyrrha said, and whilst Yang snorted, Jaune was suddenly a lot more nervous.

He knew what they were going to ask, and he didn't know how to respond.

So he said the first thing that came to his mind. "Okay."

' _Eloquent as ever, Jaune. Nailed it.'_

* * *

 **Well, this chapter was mostly written during my lunch/study breaks at Uni, so if the quality is a little under/over, that might be why. Goodwitch with the clutch, though.**

 **Anyway, onto reviews!**

 **Slenderbrine: I prefer the name Arc Lightning. (I'm secretly putting Arc Lightning down as either a spell or a title. Or both.)**

 **merendinoemiliano: Hate to disappoint, because I'm starting to consider Lancaster as the main pairing. If that puts you, or anyone else off, so be it, but that may still be up in the air. Don't disappear just yet!**

 **SentinalSlice: There's a good reason why Nora may just win a rematch at this point.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: I could use the RTF version, I guess. Honestly, it's far too much effort for me to reasonably put in without taking a whole day or so to do, so I'm just going to skip it for now. If I start any new projects I'll double-post there too. Looking forward to seeing it, PM me a link whenever you get a chapter up!**

 **Tex: Alright, thanks for the input. As much as you think the execution sucks, that's probably because I've never done something like this before.**

 **Reesesracer: Ah, but the book wasn't destroyed! So, technical bypass at best, but accurate nonetheless.**

 **TypedSomeWords: You're on the right track with a pharmacy, because Jaune may find himself becoming an Alchemist soon enough. Well, traditional alchemist, not Full Metal. Well...**

 **jp0625: I have a few unmentioned Stats, or hidden Stats, which are uneditable. Perception, or PER, is one of these. It's mostly due to the convenience of plot less than any technical reason, though.**

 **And that's all for reviews this week, although it was technically two weeks, but shh, don't make such a fuss. I still read all the reviews and PMs, so leave 'em if you got 'em!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	13. A Witty Chapter Title

**Apologies for missing another week, but the good news is that I've already written half of the next chapter, so it'll definitely be up next week. Enjoy the chapter, though!**

 **Also, I'm now on twitter! fat_flying**

 **Come visit!**

* * *

Jaune was, understandably, nervous.

His team had practically ushered into their dorm, and decided that maybe, just maybe, they'd shower before having their talk.

So, here was Jaune, last into the bathroom.

Scared, nervous, terrified.

He could pick and choose an emotion at will, at this point.

Well, as long as it was based in fear.

The lukewarm water that ran down his back washed away some of the grime he was coated in, and he turned, letting the water run down his face as he thought.

If they asked about his semblance, he wasn't sure how he was going to respond.

What he did know, however, was that the team, regardless of how this conversation went down, would all need to agree on a rotating bathroom schedule of some sort. Constant lukewarm-turning-cold water wasn't exactly what Jaune had been looking forward to when he left home. Sure, there were four less girls he had to deal with, but still.

He needed to have some kind of leadership standard.

Ruby had probably figured all that out already.

What Jaune also needed was to not get so distracted easily, and he decided to reprimand himself by shutting off the water, towelling himself off and dressing in fresh, clean clothes that didn't smell of Ursa entrails. Or, Ursa brain, at any rate.

Jaune didn't know if Ursa had brains, though you'd think he'd be intimately aware of that fact.

He opened the bathroom door, ready to face the proverbial music.

"Jaune," Pyrrha started, before he'd even closed the door behind him.

"Let's get this over with, I guess…" Jaune spoke, trailing off as he glanced around the room.

"We need to talk… about Cardin."

Jaune felt a massive weight lift off his chest.

* * *

"So, whatcha think they're talkin' about?" Nora asked, leaning over to her partner as Team RRYN fetched what was basically a late lunch.

Ruby hmm-ed and haah-ed for a moment, before settling on a theory. "Probably the fact that Jaune blew up the head of a giant Ursa with his feet."

Nora laughed loudly, drawing a little bit of ire from the various students on their free periods, but either she didn't care or she was blissfully unaware. "I'd love to see Jauney try to fight me with that move! He'd have a surprise waiting for him!"

"I dunno, Nora, the last time you fought Jaune you didn't exactly prove that you were superior," Yang teased, giving the hyperactive ginger a nudge from the other side.

"No one's ever fought me twice and won!" Nora cheered, and Ruby noted the slightest of smirks appear on Ren's face.

"I am a little worried, though. AWBN has had some, uh, growing pains, I guess. I know Weiss is pretty prickly, and I guess Blake has barely spoken any words outside of direct, unavoidable conversation, so…" Ruby muttered, as she scooped a handful of strawberries onto a plate of pancakes.

"Yeah, but at least Pyrrha's nice! And you and Jaune are all buddy-buddy, so I reckon between the two of them they could sort the others out!" Yang said, shuffling past Nora as she continued to shovel pancakes onto her plate, giving her sister a quick side-hug.

"Besides, we've got a silent teammate ourselves, don't we Ren?" Yang said with a laugh, looking at her partner.

That silent smirk on Ren's face was still there, and he let out a light chuckle. "I wouldn't say I'm silent. More… at peace. Having three hyperactive teammates requires a counterweight."

"Pfft. Counterweight! Sure thing monk-boy," Yang laughed almost as loud as Nora, and Ruby noticed that her team was gathering more stares.

"C'mon, guys. Let's just get our food and get out of here, the older students are starting to get mad!" Ruby hissed, practically turning as red as her cloak, head buried in her hood.

The remaining members of RRYN decided that following their leader's order would be a smart decision indeed.

* * *

"He wilfully endangered not just us, but Team RRYN too. He's a menace, Jaune," Pyrrha said, pacing back and forth around the room as Jaune walked over to his bed, taking a seat.

"Okay, so we'll go to the teachers, talk to them. I'm sure Professor Goodwitch will side with us," Jaune replied.

"It doesn't work like that, Jaune. I understand that you didn't attend a combat school before Beacon, you told us that much, so I can realise why you wouldn't understand how it works. We're expected to solve our own problems, Jaune. If a student is bullying another student, the student being bullied is expected to solve it themselves," Pyrrha explained.

Jaune frowned, and before he could speak, Weiss spoke up. "That isn't to say the student is effectively abandoned. If it goes from basic, and I use that word lightly, bullying, to much more deliberate injury, to the point where it breaks the law, then teachers will step in. We're legally adults, Jaune. Or at least, most of us are. We're expected to solve our own problems."

Jaune nodded in understanding. "I guess so… though I'm not completely in agreement with that. Regardless, though, I'm guessing we have to take care of Cardin somehow. Any ideas?"

Silence fell amongst AWBN's dorm, before the one person they didn't expect spoke up.

"We could always kill him," Blake said.

Three sets of eyes locked on her, and Jaune gave a short, sharp laugh. "The first joke we get her to make, and it's that. I'm not sure if I should cheer or cry."

"Blake isn't too far off, though," Weiss began, and three sets of eyes locked onto a different target.

"What?" Pyrrha gaped, staring at the heiress.

"I'm not saying kill him, obviously, but we need him to stop. What's stopping us from bluffing?" Weiss said, explaining her line of thinking.

"Um…" Jaune began, but Pyrrha had already latched onto the idea.

"Weiss is right. If we convince Cardin that we'll be far less forgiving if he attempts anything a second time, he's sure to stop!" The red-headed champion said in agreement.

"Alright, alright. That can be plan B, I guess. Let me talk to the guy first, let's try diplomacy before we threaten him? I'd rather we didn't drop to his level." Jaune stood from his bed, walking to the door. "I'll go see if they've gotten back yet. Don't worry, I'll take care of it."

As the door closed behind the blond teen, he released a metaphorical breath he didn't realise he'd been metaphorically holding.

' _Thank the Brothers, that could've gone much, much worse.'_

* * *

It was going to get so much worse.

Sure, he'd said he was going to speak with Cardin, and sure, he'd said he'd take care of it, but much like the majority of life, saying was much easier than doing.

And now, standing outside CRDL's dorm, Jaune was about to do exactly what he said he'd do.

Or, well, he was going to work up the nerve to do.

He didn't know what made him so uncomfortable. He'd bested Cardin multiple times, and the teen had resorted to pretty mediocre 'pranks', if they could even be called that.

Jaune decided to bite the bullet. He knocked on the door.

And, as doors tended to, it opened, the surly face of Cardin staring at him.

"What the hell do you want, Arc?" Cardin asked, glaring at him.

Jaune could see behind him, though, and he noticed the other three members of CRDL back away from the door, discreetly reaching for their weapons.

"Cardin, we need to talk. Somewhere a little less populated," Jaune said, gesturing for Cardin to step out of the room.

It looked as if Cardin was three seconds away from attempting to strangle Jaune, but Jaune watched as the emotion faded from the heavyset teen's eyes.

A noncommittal grunt escaped his mouth, and the door closed behind him.

Jaune took that as an indication that Cardin was going to follow him, and as such he began walking, finding the nearest empty common room and stepping in.

"What the hell is it, Arc? I don't have time for your bullshit," Cardin said, as he leaned against a wall, trying somewhat in vain to look tough.

"You put not only myself, but my team in danger today. That isn't going to happen again. Am I clear?" Jaune said.

The look on Cardin's face indicated that he was, in fact, not clear.

"Aw, boo-hoo. One of the year's best teams couldn't handle an Ursa?" Cardin said, a sinister smirk on his face. "Sounds like your bark is worse than your bite!"

Jaune slammed his fist into the wall next to Cardin's head, anger written into the very lines of his face. "Don't. Just don't. You've got two choices, Cardin. You either stop now, like I promised my team I'd have you do, or we can all come back, and you'll see exactly how we killed that giant Ursa. We'll perform a rather close example, in fact."

Cardin stared daggers at Jaune, and Jaune returned the stare, neither breaking eye contact.

"Hmph. Fine. But don't think you intimidate me. I ain't afraid of you, Arc. And when I beat you in our next combat class, we'll reconsider this 'discussion'," Cardin grunted, pushing past Jaune and leaving, heavy stomps echoing through the hallway as Jaune listened to the teen walk away.

Of course, Jaune wasn't looking towards the door. He was staring at the notification box that appeared.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Intimidating Presence (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can, at will, give off an intimidating aura, which will influence those around you. The intimidation is more effective the higher the level of the skill, and the higher your Charisma._ _**Level 1; XP 10/12.**_ **]**

Well, that would've helped earlier.

* * *

Lately, Jaune had been thinking.

He'd been doing a lot of thinking, actually. Way more than he'd ever really needed to do before these past few weeks.

He'd started attending Beacon Academy, a childhood dream of his. He'd met seven people he really enjoyed spending time around, and he'd discovered a semblance that was insanely powerful.

With the semblance came the thinking, though.

Which was currently what Jaune was doing. He'd gone back to his team, told them that Cardin wouldn't be doing anything any more, and then he'd said he was going to go for a walk.

So, here he was. Out in one of Beacon's many courtyards, Jaune pacing around enjoying the afternoon breeze.

And thinking.

Jaune liked to consider himself intelligent.

Sure, he wasn't book-smart like Weiss, combat-smart like Pyrrha. He wasn't street-smart like Blake or social-smart like Yang. He wasn't worldly like Ren, as driven as Nora, or as weapon-smart as Ruby, but he liked to think he was something the others weren't, or weren't as much as he was.

Jaune was adaptable. That much was undeniable, seeing as he'd discovered his semblance so recently in comparison to his friends.

And yet, that was what brought him to this conclusion. He was adaptable, sure, but he hadn't fully invested himself in his semblance yet.

It'd been power-trips and accidental discoveries that had led him thus far. Pure power output, raw damage, with no thought processes, no strategy.

The first thing people did when they discovered their semblance was experiment, and Jaune had done that. Unlike everyone else, though, Jaune's semblance didn't seem to have a limit.

So, Jaune couldn't stop experimenting. He needed to find somewhere secluded, where he could just constantly push his boundaries, and stretch his limits.

The System was like a video game in so many aspects, to the point where it acknowledged it itself. So, Jaune needed to stop looking at it like a semblance. It wasn't, there was just way too much going on for that to be true.

Instead, he needed to think freely, unobstructed by prior, preconceived notions of how a semblance was supposed to work. Which he had an advantage in, considering he'd never really studied anything to do with semblances or even Aura until recently.

And all of that cumulated into the explanation of how Jaune managed to turn a peaceful, breezy afternoon walk into an unexpected visit to an empty clearing at the base of Beacon's cliffs.

It also explained why he had his fancy new Beacon-assigned scroll out, as he found a relatively comfortable seat on an upturned log.

Jaune began to browse the CCTnet. Everyone researched their semblances, right? To see if there were records of people with similar semblances, and to see if anyone had any ideas for applications. Sure, he was browsing forums talking about various video games, but that did technically count.

As he scrolled through page after page of game wiki, review and idea thread, Jaune simultaneously brought up his skill menu, checking through it in an effort to see what he already had.

What it culminated into was a bunch of different spells all jumbled together without any kind of order.

"Okay, first let's sort all this out," Jaune murmured to himself, placing his scroll next to him.

He began organising, first by creating custom categories to sort the skills into, and then assigning skills to those categories.

It took him nearly fifteen minutes, but he was finally done.

Ten categories: System Standard, which was skills that came as default with the System, which was _System Mind_ and _System Body_.

Proficiency, for his weapon proficiencies.

Physical Combat, for his physical attacks like _Shield Bash_ and _Battering Ram_.

Utility, for skills such as the somewhat useless _Dishwashing_ and _Elemental Infusion_.

Mobility, for such skills as _Jump_ and _Sprint_.

Perception, for _Observe_ and _Sixth Sense_.

Speech, for all his Charisma-based skills like _Intimidating Presence_ and _Deceitful Speech_.

Aura, for his sole Aura skill _Aura Control_.

Summon, for his yet-untouched summoning skills.

And finally, last but most definitely not least, Magical Combat, which featured a whopping whole eleven skills.

All in all, Jaune could see the imbalance clear as day when he looked at the list.

He wasn't really using his semblance to the best of his ability. Sure, he could shoot orbs of magic from his hands, but that wasn't really doing anything to help him if he couldn't keep up with the target.

Or if the target simply tanked the shot.

According to some of the forums he'd read, there were a few things he needed to be wary of.

First, raw damage meant nothing if he went up against something that resisted the damage he was dealing, and whilst that was a little too game-literal, he understood the meaning behind it. He needed to balance his own attacks with clever strategy, not just spam-fire magic at the opponent in the hopes it'd just wither and die.

Secondly, variety was the spice of life. Having a massive selection of skills to suit every situation was preferable to specialising in one single skillset in the short-term, and then focusing on a more specific set at a later date would help him narrow down the selection of skills he used the most, allowing him to prepare for the less common situations.

Thirdly, buffing and teamwork. That was technically third and fourth, but Jaune decided to just merge the two, to make it easier on himself. He needed to make sure that not only he, but his entire team was ready to face the enemy at his level. So, if or when he exceeded his team's average level, based on their _Observe_ stats listed, he'd have to start doing more work to help out.

As far as he knew, whilst actual games had party systems, the System featured no such thing. Well, he hadn't actually tried, but he'd assumed he would've seen an option of some kind for it if it did in fact exist.

As far as he was aware, anyway.

Fourthly, Jaune needed more better gear. One of the major parts of RPGs was the loot systems, from new armor to better weapons, and seeing as Jaune had already seen that clothing and weapons could get stat buffs and debuffs, he knew he needed more things.

Besides, his armor was cheap steel stuff his father had gotten him for a birthday. His father hadn't wanted to get Jaune real armor, citing the argument that he wouldn't ever need it.

Jaune had insisted, and his father had caved somewhat, although that was more from Jaune's mother than anything Jaune had done, and thus the cheap steel plating Jaune had received had come into existence.

It served its purpose, or it would've, had Jaune not suddenly gained a vast amount of abilities, including instant regeneration of injuries. That being said, he still enjoyed not being cleaved apart like wet paper.

He wasn't sure about replacing Crocea Mors, though. It was an heirloom, a relic of a time long past, and he wanted to honour the promise he'd made to not only the blade, but himself.

And so, Jaune pocketed his new scroll, stood up from the log, and stretched his stiff joints.

It was time for some experimental magic.

* * *

The clearing was peaceful, still, despite the pockmarked grass and slightly smoking wounds the trees seemed to feature.

Jaune had spent the past half-an-hour testing all his magical combat spells with _Lightning Infusion_ , to startling degrees of destructive capability.

Granted, ground was a pretty damn good method of countering lightning and electricity, but the fact that he was still tearing up chunks proved just how powerful the infusion was.

Now was the time he moved on from prior known spells.

Jaune congealed a ball of Mana in his hand, molding it and shaping it into a ball, using his control over Mana to make an almost hardened Mana shell around the amorphous interior.

He willed it to be something he hadn't tried yet, and enacted his plan.

With a lob, Jaune arced the ball of Mana towards his imaginary target, and waited.

The ball of Mana landed in the dirt, rolling slightly, before a second passed.

Jaune felt the air push his hair back as the orb exploded in a cloud of Mana-coloured smoke, with an added sprinkling of dirt.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Grenade (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now focus Mana into an orb, which can be thrown. A short time after leaving your hand, it will detonate, dealing significant damage to all in range. Costs 80 MP per cast._ _**Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

Well, that worked better than Jaune had been expecting. Now he had a way of hitting things around corners, and an AoE attack that didn't require him to physically be present.

A few other suggestions in a few forums suggested a variety of things Jaune could adapt, but he'd wiki'd a few standard spells in a bunch of different RPGs.

Now was time to try another one, something he'd read on a wiki page for "Grimm & Grottos", a popular tabletop RPG that Jaune had actually tried once.

Turns out his family wasn't the biggest fan of a game based on their job. Jaune could understand why.

He focused the Mana into his hand, concentrating. The Mana formed a _Mana Bolt_ , a spell he hadn't used in some time, but instead of releasing it, he forced more and more Mana into it.

The bolt got bigger, bigger still, until Jaune felt it cease growing. He pointed it at a nearby tree, and unleashed it.

The bolt left his hand a little slower than it's smaller, standard counterpart, but the amount of condensed Mana that was inside showed when it impacted, effectively disintegrating the entire part of the tree where it impacted.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Pulse (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System you are capable of charging a Mana Bolt into a larger, slower moving projectile which explodes on impact. Costs 70 MP per cast._ _**Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

"Woah…" Jaune uttered, staring at the smoking stump where there had once been a tree.

If Jaune's Huntsman career fell through, he could definitely get a job as a land-clearer.

Jaune stepped back from the wooden mess he'd made, and retrieved his scroll from his pocket, reopening he CCTnet tabs he'd been browsing, scrolling through to find one he'd bookmarked.

The video played, and Jaune watched in interest as the decades-old video showed a youngish-looking scientist, wearing a beaten and charred lab coat. The scientist grabbed a small pouch off the table next to him, pointed to a small metal plate on the floor, and threw the pouch hard.

The pouch angled sharply, hitting the metal plate with force, and the entire camera lens was swallowed with white light, the sound cutting out completely after a split-second of static.

The first documented test of high-quality flash powder had been a massive success, of course, and soon flash powder had become a staple of self-defense all over Remnant, but Jaune wasn't interested in the powder itself at the moment.

No, he was interested in the effects it had.

He formed Mana in his hand, closing his eyes tight and focusing.

He considered the _Mana Grenade_ , but modified it, adjusting the magical parameters that the System gave him intimate knowledge of, even if he wasn't consciously aware of it.

Now for the worst part. With nothing to test it on, Jaune opened his eyes, and threw the Mana.

The blinding flash that followed would haunt Jaune for at least a week. His eyes and ears stung, and he swore he could taste blood.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Flash (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can create a small burst of Mana in your hand that can be thrown like a grenade, which creates a blinding flash of light upon impact, inflicting temporary Blindness and Disorient in any unprepared target. Costs 40 MP per cast._ _**Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

Well, he knew it worked.

"Mawp, mawp!" Jaune moaned, trying to regain hearing and vision as he stumbled about the clearing.

' _Note to self, don't use on self again. Bad idea. Secondary note to self, if Cardin decides to ignore the warning, use on him.'_

Jaune slumped to the ground, back against the ruined trunk from his _Mana Pulse_ experiment, as he recovered.

Okay, he was done with magical combat spells for now. It hurt too much.

Although, he did wonder what a lightning-infused _Mana Flash_ would be like.

"You know what? Let's just leave that for another time. I don't think my eyes can take it again," He said to himself, rubbing at his eye-sockets with the palms of his hands.

Jaune knew he needed more. More skills, more stats, more everything. He needed to prepare. He knew Ozpin was going to ask him to fight him again, and Jaune was really, really not looking forward to that.

Jaune opened another tab on his scroll, browsing through, before a word caught his eye.

An article on buffs, and another on potions.

Jaune's eyes lit up, and not because of the _Mana Flash_ this time.

* * *

Jaune didn't know how to make a buff.

This wasn't unexpected, of course, so far all he'd done was focus Mana into one part of his body or another.

Now trying to narrow down something to buff to apply Mana to, it was far more difficult.

Jaune couldn't buff strength by just focusing on his muscles, it didn't seem to work that way.

Maybe he was going about it wrong, but maybe he wasn't. Jaune didn't know.

Then, Jaune was struck by an idea.

"System, help?" He said out loud.

The only thing that responded was the sounds of the breeze as it gusted across the leaves of the Emerald Forest.

Then, a notification.

 **[Welcome to the System Guide!]**

 **[Please enter your query!]**

"Creating Buffs," Jaune enunciated clearly.

 **[Parsing…]**

 **[To create a buff skill, focus on the stat you wish to buff, and apply Mana!]**

 **[Please enter your query!]**

"Umm…" Jaune muttered. "Focusing on stats?"

 **[Parsing…]**

 **[To focus on a stat, simply consider that stat in your mind!]**

 **[Please enter your query!]**

"Dismissed," Jaune said, and he watched as the window closed itself.

Then, for step two, he thought hard. Not about his muscles, or his brain, but the very stat itself.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Power (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you may buff your STR stat whilst concentrating. Initial cast costs 50 MP, lasts for 1 minute. Subsequent casts cost 30 MP, and reset the timer. Cast cost resets if time limit is exceeded. Buff is +_ _Skill Level_ _% of STR._ _**Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

Jaune didn't feel any different, but when he read through the skill description he understood why. He was currently gaining a 1% boost in STR, which was nothing.

Jaune also noticed he'd have to maintain an eye on the little timer that sat in the corner of his peripheral vision, counting down from a minute.

All in all, though, a useful skill to have.

Jaune decided to make the rest of the buff skills whilst he had time, on the way back to the dorm. He'd already been out here for enough time, that was for sure.

First, though, he'd confront the watcher he'd noticed a few seconds ago.

Jaune drew Crocea Mors with ease, stepping forward towards where _Sixth Sense_ had triggered.

The Beowolf emerged, maw bleeding, covered in cuts and scratches, and Jaune quickly observed it.

 **[Beowolf]**

 **[Grimm, Level 5]**

An easy kill, Jaune knew it. He stepped forwards and quickly delivered what could only be considered a mercy, driving Crocea Mors into the neck of the lupine Grimm, where it seemed to simply crumple and collapse on the ground, already fading away.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 719 XP!]**

 **[A skill has leveled!]**

 **[** _ **Power**_ **has reached Level 4!]**

 **[A title has reached a new rank!]**

 **[You are now an Amateur Huntsman!]**

Now Jaune could head back.

* * *

 **Well, that was a fun little intermediary chapter. We can officially call Jaundice to a close with that, I guess, and move on to bigger, better things. Like accidentally flashbanging ourselves again. Hooray.**

 **Also, just as a note, the spreadsheet has grown again. We now have a total of over 100 known and unknown skills in the list, and those are just ones that I've thought of, plus the couple you reviewers have left. It's also now all colour-coded and organised, much like the chapter mentioned. I did actually go through and organise them to the point where I spent a lunch break just doing that. Probably should've been working on actual work, but eh.**

* * *

 **Oh, before I say anything else, I should mention I'm now somewhat-officially the Beta for Aros R. Cao's _"When You Wage War On The Grimm Queen (Again?)"_ , and as such you should go check it out! As of the day this chapter goes up I haven't edited a chapter that's been posted, but that'll change soon enough!**

* * *

 **Now, onto reviews!**

 **SentinalSlice: Hope the mention of a lack of a party system has alleviated any potential concerns. Despite the fact I've mentioned there won't be any party system, lol.**

 **SonJubbi: I've always been a fan of the Ruby/Jaune dynamic, and it definitely could've been so much better in the later volumes. Jaune's canon introduction still remains one of the more entertaining dialogues in all of RWBY, that's for sure.**

 **merendinoemiliano: Hate to disappoint, but I don't think I'll be changing the planned pairing any time soon. I'm a massive fan of both Dragonslayer and Knightshade, though. Jaune gets all the cool ship names.**

 **Random Nerd Otaku, Ozpin52, Aim: Wow, that's a lot of support for Lancaster. Huh. Well, like I said above, it's pretty much confirmed now. Although we'll be seeing some other, more classic ships too.**

 **Guest: Nora is absolutely a Berserker in the classic nordic fashion. Hooray for leg breaking!**

 **TheArchmage1: And to think I started my fanfiction career with a Destiny crossover. Who'd've thunk I'd make a reference to that on complete accident?**

 **Azrael Zero: Greatsword-Mode isn't technically a mode until Volume 4, canonically, but I do like the idea. I'm actually planning on Jaune and Ruby bonding over weaponry, anyways.**

 **Guest: If you're meh on Lancaster, there are plenty of other ships that I'll be featuring in Systema, and even though Jaune is the main character of this fic it doesn't mean we won't be seeing other character focused chapters. Everyone deserves a place in the spotlight, I guess, and considering this fic is veering slowly into a more AU setting, we'll start to see some interesting differences. Hopefully interesting.**

 **Slenderbrine: I'll admit, I did google "Bear Puns". I'm not a funny person, and I can't make puns. Which are mutually exclusive, but still.**

 **embrewing: Jaune Arc, The Dishwasher, starring Jaune "The Dishwasher" Arc, featuring art by Dishwasher1910. (None of that is true. Unless Dish is accepting commissions and I suddenly find like a hundred dollars I could justify spending on that.)**

 **Guest: It's now _Chain Lightning_ and the title is Arc Lightning. Flows better, and honestly, I love that title. I might make a oneshot using it, if it hasn't already been done.**

 **SnapDragon21: Pfft, a harem. I'd love to have a self-fulfilling fic based on what 'I' want to happen in my life, but I doubt I can write one realistic romance, let alone a realistic harem. Glad you like it though!**

 **TypedSomeWords: Best Nora you've ever read? A way with words? Christ, those are pretty generous compliments. Also, as for relationship stuff, I guess we'll have to see :P**

 **NickSkyz: Cheers, mate! Glad you like it!**

 **And I guess that's all for reviews this week, well, fortnight, but I'm reluctant to say the other word for biweekly, lest I anger the preteens. That's their word.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	14. Rapscallions of the Highest Degree

Somehow, Jaune had walked into an argument.

"What could there possibly be reason for the White Fang to rob a Dust store? They're not thieves, they fight for respect, equality and freedom!" Blake shouted, showing the most emotion so far.

"What reason is there for them not to! They're criminals, scum, bottom of the barrel! They robbed the Dust store for the same reason other Faunus commit crimes!" Weiss replied with an equal amount of heat, which meant her voice had reached a pitch that reminded Jaune way to much of the aftermath of _Mana Flash_.

"Woah, hey, what's going on?" Jaune asked, staring at the bickering partnership.

"Weiss believes that all Faunus are scum!" Blake said, voice dripping with venom.

"What!? You claim that the White Fang are good guys!" Weiss exclaimed.

Jaune shook his head. "I know what you're arguing about, I doubt most of Beacon doesn't with how loud the two of you are. Why are you arguing about it?"

Neither girl was able to answer without restating what they'd previously said, which is exactly what they did.

Jaune sighed. "Well, this isn't getting anywhere. If you two want to sort this out, can you find somewhere secluded, or soundproof, or preferably both."

The two ignored him, instead deciding to continue their argument.

Jaune decided to go speak with his partner, instead.

He sat next to her, giving her a tap on the shoulder.

Pyrrha took her earphones out, and gave a quick, half-hearted smile.

"How long have they been at it?" Jaune asked, nodding his head in the pair's direction.

"About ten minutes now. I stopped listening about eight minutes ago, so far it's been the same points over and over again. I'd normally try to stop them, but that didn't work out so well when I tried. If they want to fight, Jaune, they can. Not much either of us can do to sort it ourselves," Pyrrha explained.

Jaune nodded in agreement. "So, should I get some popcorn, or drinks, or something? Maybe a scoreboard?"

The sound of choked-back laughter escaped Pyrrha's lips as both Weiss and Blake glared at Jaune.

"No, don't let me interrupt," Jaune said.

He wasn't prepared, however, for the argument to go on for another five minutes.

"Alright, enough!" It's been fifteen minutes! Can't you just agree to disagree!?" Jaune exclaimed, fed up with the situation.

"Hmph. Do you know why I hate the White Fang, Blake? Because they've been enemies of my family for years. Imagine growing up in a house, almost completely alone, whilst your father slowly but surely becomes more and more aggressive, more and more violent, because every month, at least one member of the board of directors turns up dead," Weiss said, her voice quieter than it had been in the past quarter-hour.

Blake went to say something, but Weiss wasn't finished, her voice ramping back up again. "No! I knew them, ate dinner with them, and then someone _mailed their head to our doorstep_. Multiple times! Sometimes it wasn't even the head! Sometimes it was an arm, or a finger, or a toe! Wrapped in bloody ransom notes! Do you know what that's like!?" She shouted.

"Well maybe we were just tired of being pushed around!" Blake screamed back, before paling.

Jaune snapped his head to the raven-haired girl that looked inches away from death.

"Blake…" He began, but she was already sprinting out of the room, leaving three very stunned teenagers.

"Oh, shit."

* * *

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Leading A Team (Part 2)**_ **]**

 **[Find and speak with Blake Belladonna.]**

 **[Reward: 5000 XP]**

RRYN, Pyrrha and Jaune were in Vale.

Normally, this'd be an occasion for celebration, but today it wasn't.

Evening had fallen steadily, and even the indomitable spirit that was Nora was starting to get tired.

"Jaune, we're not going to be able to find Blake at night. We have to head back, and come out in the morning," Pyrrha said, placing a hand on Jaune's shoulder.

"Damnit, Pyr, this was my fault. I shouldn't have let them argue, I shouldn't have let her run. I should've been there to help her. What kind of bloody leader am I?" Jaune half-whispered, rubbing his face.

"Jaune, it isn't your fault. Come on, we'll come back tomorrow," Pyrrha replied.

"Yeah… You go back with RRYN. I'll keep looking, just for a bit. I can't give up, not yet."

Pyrrha gave her partner a sympathetic look, before turning around. "C'mon, Ruby. Let's head back. Jaune's going to stay a little longer, then he'll be back."

Ruby gave Jaune a sad smile and a small wave, before motioning for her team to follow her.

"Good luck, Jaune," She called, and soon Jaune was left alone, in the middle of Vale in mid-evening.

"Now, if I was a Faunus hiding her heritage, where would I be?" Jaune asked himself, looking around.

They knew the residential district was clear, they'd spent at least an hour asking around, to no avail.

There were a few other options, but Jaune didn't really know where to start.

Of course, Jaune wasn't without abilities to make this slightly easier on himself.

Actually…

Jaune was without abilities to make this slightly easier on himself.

How, after spending all afternoon learning new skills, did he not have a single skill that would be applicable in this situation?

Well, he supposed he could just start blowing up Vale until she arrived to investigate, but there were a whole lot of problems with that idea.

Jaune broke into a jog, headed down the boulevard that he'd been standing on talking to himself and looking to the world like a fool, but as he rounded the corner he found something very hard stop him.

The two of them collapsed onto the ground, and Jaune suddenly was very happy for _System Mind_ and its ability to eliminate embarrassment.

Olive would be so happy to make fun of him for this.

Jaune clambered to his feet quickly. "Oh, sorry! I didn't see you there, that's my bad! Are you okay?" He asked, reaching a hand out to help up the girl he'd practically crushed underneath him.

The ginger-haired girl took his hand, and he pulled her to her feet.

"Yes, I'm quite fine! Thank you for helping me up!" The girl said, her voice somewhat disjointed.

"Well. uh… sorry about that. Hey, you wouldn't have happened to see a black-haired girl with a bow run past anytime soon, would you?" Jaune asked, going for the longshot.

Swish, swish, score.

"Yes, I did! Twenty minutes ago, in fact! She was with a boy with a blond monkey tail, actually!" The girl said.

"Oh, thank you so much… uh…" Jaune began, before realising he hadn't actually asked the girl her name.

"I'm Penny!" Penny exclaimed, seemingly way to happy about her own name.

"I'm Jaune. Nice to meet you, Penny. I've got to go catch up with the black-haired girl, though. Do you know which direction they went?"

Penny pointed down the road Jaune had been headed. "Last I saw they were headed down there!"

Jaune began to jog away, nodding a thanks to Penny. "Thanks, Penny! You're a great help!"

Penny nodded to herself in satisfaction.

* * *

The Blackest Roast was a cafe in downtown Vale that featured a plethora of coffee blends, along with some of the best teas in all of Vale.

Jaune wasn't surprised when he noted that second part. The place was classy but not five-star, and had a homely, art-deco style that really blended well with the concept they were going for.

It also featured an exterior balcony covered in tables on the second floor, and Jaune could see the tip of a blond tail sticking up over the edge.

The door chimed open as Jaune stepped over the threshold, and the attendant there looked to him. "I'm sorry, sir, we're closing in twenty minutes. We can't brew any fresh coffee, but we do have some tea available if you would like."

"No thanks. I'm just here to see a friend, that's all," Jaune answered, and the attendant nodded.

AWBN's leader quickly and quietly scaled the stairs, and stepped out onto the balcony.

"You know the White Fang?" The raven-haired girl with the cat ears atop her head asked the blond boy with the monkey tail.

"The crazy terrorists? Yeah, I know 'em," The boy replied, blissfully unaware of Jaune's presence.

"I was once a part of the White Fang," Blake continued, and Jaune couldn't help but smirk as the blond nearly spat out his tea.

"I mean, yeah, the White Fang, glad someone's fighting for our rights!"

Jaune didn't need to see Blake's face to know she'd raised an eyebrow.

"You could've just told us, Blake," Jaune said, announcing his presence.

Blake wanted to pretend she wasn't surprised, but she knew Jaune had noticed the slight jump she did when he spoke up.

She handled the delivery of her lines well, though, to her credit.

"What, and tell the heiress to the Schnee Dust Company that I was an ex-terrorist who'd worked alongside those who'd assassinated members of the company's board of directors?"

Jaune fell silent for a moment. "You could've told me. I'm your team leader, Blake. If you can't trust me, who can you trust? Some random guy you found on the street? No offense."

"None taken."

"It isn't about trust, Jaune. I left the White Fang because of what they've become. I can't let my past mistakes define me," Blake replied.

Jaune pulled one of the chairs closer to the table, and took a seat. "You really are foolish, you know that? I'm the last one to judge about keeping secrets, I'll give you that, but still. At least I told you I was keeping a secret, and that I couldn't tell you what it was. You just pretended the whole time. How do you think I feel, how Pyrrha feels. Hell, how Weiss feels? She trusted you, you're her partner, and you spent the entire time lying to her!"

"She's as bad as her father. You really think I care about how Weiss feels?" Blake asked, a hint of venom on the words.

Jaune gave a short, sharp bark of laughter. "You think you don't? I'm no idiot, Blake. I can tell whether someone's guilty or not, I've had plenty of practise. You care, of course you do. If you didn't, you wouldn't have left the White Fang, you wouldn't have run when Weiss discovered your heritage, you wouldn't still be in Vale, trying to figure out how to solve this problem yourself!"

That stunned Blake into silence.

"Yeah, I'm not stupid, Blake. If you really didn't care, you'd be on the nearest airship headed to gods-know-where. So, what's your plan?"

"I... " Blake fell silent, deep in thought. "In order to prove that I'm not guilty, and that the White Fang aren't guilty, it would be to go to a crime in progress, and not see the actual culprits in action."

Jaune raised an eyebrow. "I'm usually for hare-brained schemes, but this seems a little too random."

"Not really. There's a shipment of SDC Dust coming in to the docks in like half an hour. We could go check it out," The blond monkey-Faunus said, and Jaune turned to him.

"I'm Jaune Arc."

"Sun Wukong. Nice to meet 'ya."

Blake sighed.

 **[Quest Updated!]**

 **[** _ **Leading A Team (Part 2)**_ **]**

 **[Discover who is stealing the Dust, and stop the culprit.]**

 **[5000 XP]**

* * *

The docks, unsurprisingly, smelt like salt water, smoke and fish.

It was also well lit by massive spotlights, covered in barbed wire topped chain-link fences and shipping containers.

Which shouldn't have come as a surprise to anyone familiar with the basic concept of a dock.

However, from their vantage point atop an adjacent warehouse, Jaune, Blake and Sun found something that was a surprise.

White Fang members, clad in uniform, directing other White Fang members clad in uniform around, the Faunus terrorists quickly and quietly doing their best to prepare the shipping containers for transport.

"Damn it. I was hoping I was wrong," Blake muttered under her breath.

"Wait. Something's wrong," Jaune said, staring down into the dock.

"C'mon, you animals! I don't pay you to stand around and fail miserably at a heist! It's simple, really! I stand around and look dashing, and you do all the work!"

"What the..? Is that Roman Torchwick?" Jaune asked, trying to make out the face.

The Faunus, with better eyesight, both nodded. "Something's wrong. The White Fang would never work with Torchwick. I need to check this out," Blake said.

"Wait!" Jaune hissed, right as Blake dropped off the roof of the warehouse, quietly making her way towards the master-thief.

"Damnit, Blake. I'm the team leader, you need to follow my orders!" Jaune said to himself, hopelessly.

"I know the feeling, man. Team leading is hard," Sun commiserated.

"C'mon, then. We need to go help her out," Jaune said, gripping Crocea Mors in one hand as he carefully dropped over the edge of the roof, Aura pooling in his legs as he landed as softly as he could, a quiet thump echoing over the docks.

Sun was far more silent as he dropped, using his prehensile tail to hook around an exterior light that jutted out of the side of the warehouse, before lightly dropping to his feet.

His weapon was drawn, and so Jaune followed suit, drawing Crocea Mors carefully, trying his best to not let the metal grind against metal.

The two snuck closer, only to hear the stealthiest of the three effectively announce her presence.

They peaked around the corner of the shipping crate they were taking cover behind, to see Blake with her blade at Torchwick's neck.

"Brothers and sisters of the White Fang, why are you aiding this scum?!" Blake called out, her bow tied around her wrist, feline ears exposed.

Of course, there was no answer.

"Ha. Haven't you heard, kitty cat? The White Fang and I are going in on a joint business venture together!" Roman said, his cane raising ever so slightly from the ground.

"What? They'd never-" Blake never got a chance to finish the sentence as Roman pulled the hidden trigger on his cane, a projectile leaving the barrel and impacting against the ground behind the feline Faunus.

Blake, thrown off balance, stumbled, and Roman quickly took advantage of that, throwing her to the side and aiming.

Jaune wasn't about to let all this go down without him taking a turn, and he charged towards the thief. "Sun, take care of the Fang!"

Sun was already on it, having moved the moment Jaune did, his staff spinning in one single fluid motion, knocking White Fang grunt after White Fang grunt to the ground.

Jaune couldn't spare the monkey-faunus any more attention, though, as a far more dangerous foe entered his melee range.

A slash, easily deflected, and a stab, easily side-stepped, proved that Torchwick was a primarily agility-based fighter, and so Jaune switched up his tactics to suit such a fight.

Roman would be likely to fight dirty, and Jaune was equally prepared for that, if it came down to it.

He was hoping he could finish this before it got really dangerous.

Jaune did something Roman was most definitely not expecting.

Jaune threw his shield.

The criminal barely had time to blink as Jaune channeled his inner-Pyrrha, flinging the admittedly large metal shield at him, and as it impacted against the stunned thief's chest Jaune rushed forward, now-empty hand outstretched.

Roman, to his credit, recovered quickly, and assumed Jaune was reaching for a grab, an attempt to grapple him, but Roman couldn't have been more wrong.

The immense blast of Mana that escaped Jaune's hand forced the snappily-dressed criminal backwards, and threw him off balance, the man having to strain to not fall backwards.

Jaune hadn't stopped moving forwards, though, and Crocea Mors, held tightly, swung into Roman's view, the blade arcing towards his head at an incredible speed.

Jaune was most definitely not what Roman had been suspecting. With a backstep, Roman allowed himself to lose balance slightly, his own body weight carrying him out of the reach of the glinting blade, before his own cane came up, end popping open to reveal the barrel.

A pull of the trigger, Jaune found himself staring down a rapidly approaching flare, glowing red, and having thrown his shield, Jaune was remarkably unable to protect himself as it impacted against his chest, his Aura flaring up as the explosion enveloped him in a plume of fire and smoke.

When Jaune recovered, he was glad to note that Roman hadn't used the explosion as cover to approach. He was also unhappy to remember that Roman didn't need to approach, as he had access to a ranged option.

That wasn't to say Jaune didn't have a multitude of ranged options, either, it was just that he didn't really want to advertise his semblance to a world-renowned criminal who would be more than happy to sell that information to anyone or everyone he came across.

Ozpin's warning was still fresh on his mind, after all.

Jaune looked to the side to see Sun locked in combat with the group of White Fang grunts who hadn't collapsed yet, which was more than it was less, but Sun looked as if he'd barely broken a sweat.

Blake was up, though, and already working her way towards Torchwick, who'd noticed her approach and was already moving to intercept.

Jaune wasn't going to let a teammate attack alone, so in Jaune went, holding Crocea Mors in a two-handed grip just for the sake of having something to do with his other hand.

And yet Roman was prepared. His cane swung up, blocked Blake's blade, and her second blade came in, and Roman stepped back, the blade missing, and Jaune swung in, joining in the fray, and Roman spun, a flourish that served to both avoid Jaune's attack, and to make some distance.

Blake and Jaune closed in, the two trying their best to outflank the criminal, but Roman made sure to keep both of them within his vision, not allowing either to step into his blindspot.

Blake lashed out first, blade cutting through the very air as it soared towards Torchwick's head, but Torchwick replied in kind, ducking under the strike and blocking the follow up, before stepping closer and swinging with his cane.

Blake's semblance kicked in, though, and as the cane carved through, flesh became shadow and faded from existence, as Jaune was already in motion. Blake had used Roman's attack to get in his blindspot, and Jaune was doing his best to keep Roman's attention away from that fact.

Jaune, even mid-fight, could hear Sun blasting away at the grunts, but he couldn't see what exactly was happening, as Roman seemed to stop holding back.

His cane moved blindingly fast, blocking or redirecting every hit Jaune sent his way, and despite the obvious disadvantage that Roman should've been at, the man was proving the reason he was one of, if not the most wanted criminals in Vale.

A man like this should've, and wasn't, an easy fight by any stretch.

Blake slashed at the criminal's unprotected back, but the man seemed to have predicted it, spinning and hooking the curved part of his cane around Blake's wrist, tugging and flinging her into a shipping container with a surprising amount of force, the ex-terrorist leaving a dent as she slid to the ground.

She wasn't down for the count, not yet, but Jaune knew that had put a sizable dampening in her Aura, and considering she'd already taken a few hits, that wasn't a good thing.

"Roman, surrender! Your little operation is over!" Jaune shouted, blustering with confidence he didn't have.

"Ha! Little? Someone ought to send you a memo, kid! This ain't a little operation!" Roman replied with a hearty laugh, gesturing wide.

It seemed this was a signal of some sort, the criminal having a penchant for the dramatic.

The cacophonous sounds of not one, not two, not four, but three Bullheads suddenly filled the docks, as did the air currents their engines kicked up, blowing Jaune's hair back as they hovered in closer.

"It looks like my ride's here!" Roman called out. "It's been a real pleasure, kiddos, feel free to never visit!"

Roman bowed, giving his hat a small tilt, and suddenly, a pink and brown haired girl was next to him, a smirk on her face.

She hooked an arm through his, and Jaune resolved himself to not care about the warning Ozpin had given him.

Arm outstretched, Jaune willed Mana into his hand, and suddenly a _Mana Bolt_ left his palm, arcing through the air and impacting against Roman's head.

What Jaune expected to happen, is not what actually happened.

He'd expected Roman to block it, or the new hostile to block it, or either of them to dodge, or anything but what happened.

Roman and the girl exploded into a million shards of glass.

Jaune gaped at the remnants of his _Mana Bolt_ , giving his hand a glance.

"Did I just kill them?" He asked himself aloud, looking between his palm and the remaining pieces of glass that lay strewn across the concrete.

Of course, as Jaune looked up at the Bullheads, he noticed a very smug looking Roman giving him a wave as they took off, each Bullhead loaded with a shipping crate, emblazoned with the Schnee Dust Company logo.

Jaune didn't think Weiss would be able to be more angry than she had been earlier today, but Jaune had been wrong before.

Many times, in fact.

Jaune looked towards the red and blue lights that he could see approaching, sirens growing louder.

"Well, that could've gone better."

* * *

"Wilful destruction of property, wilful endangerment of yourself and others, so many crimes that you've committed in a poor attempt to prevent a crime from being committed. I'd be proud if I wasn't so disappointed."

Jaune couldn't meet the blonde woman's eyes, choosing to stare at the floor instead.

"Mr Arc, we both know you should not have intervened. Roman Torchwick is not a man to be taken lightly, nor are any of his associates. Considering he seems to have garnered some new associates, as well, I feel as if you are already aware of that."

Goodwitch turned to face the second of three people who stood there, eyes down.

"Ms Belladonna, I feel like repeating myself would be counter-productive to having you actually listen to an authority figure for once, but there are a few choice words I am contractually obligated not to say to you. Despite that, you dragged your team into a situation that could've been avoided, due to an inability to control your emotions. Learn from this experience, lest you make it once more."

Blake's cat ears drooped atop her head, amber eyes not leaving the ground.

"And you. I don't actually know who you are."

"Sun Wukong, ma'am. Student from Haven Academy, I got here early," Sun replied, not raising his head.

"I suppose I will have to get in touch with Lionheart, he can decide your punishment. I will be recommending that he is harsh, however."

Sun gulped.

"All of you, dismissed… Actually, Mr Wukong, stay here. Your unscheduled arrival requires me to accelerate certain processes, and you need somewhere to stay. I assume you haven't thought that far ahead?"

Sun shook his head.

"Then Mr Arc, Ms Belladonna, dismissed. Mr Wukong, follow me."

As Goodwitch left, Jaune and Blake finally lifted their heads, watching as an increasingly nervous Sun was led out of the room.

"Yeah, that definitely could've gone better," Jaune remarked, releasing a breath he didn't realise he was holding.

"I…" Blake began, before falling silent. She didn't resume, however, and Jaune could tell she was nervous.

"Blake, Pyrrha and Weiss are probably in our room. We've got a little time before we have to go back, so if you want to talk this through we can."

Blake looked as if she was considering the proposition.

"I have to face Weiss, no matter what happened. She's my partner, and I don't just want to give up on Beacon because of what I am, or who I was," Blake answered, finally.

"Good. You know you have to apologize, right? Not for who you were, but for what you said. Both of you do, actually."

Blake looked like she wanted to glare at him, but couldn't. "I know. I'm not happy about it, but…"

Jaune walked to the door and opened it, gesturing to Blake to leave. "Well, it's like a bandage. You just gotta rip it off fast, get it over and done with."

"You'd know about constant apologies, wouldn't you, Jaune," Blake commented.

"Seven sisters, Blake. It'd be a weird day if I didn't somehow annoy one of them."

* * *

Jaune was, unsurprisingly, in the shower. Granted, he was covered in dust, smoke and various industrial grime, and for the second time today he was rinsing himself of combat residue.

He was also, unsurprisingly, using his alone time to manage the System.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Leading A Team (Part 2)**_ **]**

 **[Have Blake Belladonna rejoin Team AWBN.]**

 **[Reward: 5000 XP]**

Jaune hadn't gotten any experience from his fight with Torchwick, but that was to be expected, seeing as Roman had gotten away.

He had, however, gotten a not-so-insignificant amount of XP from the quest reward, and Blake was back with AWBN, so it was really two rewards.

Although, now that he thought about it, he should really ask her about what she was really doing in the Emerald Forest when he found her.

"Man, what a team. Professional tournament fighter, conglomerate heiress, ex-terrorist, and a video-game character. We're a motley crew, alright," Jaune murmured to himself, as hot water poured over his theoretically battered body.

And to think, he didn't even have to listen to either partner air their grievances to each other, get angry, and then attempt to force themselves past that anger and past prejudices in an attempt to work together.

Because it would've been far too much to listen to the two of them go at it for a second time in one day.

* * *

 **Well, that was a chapter. Sorry if it seems rushed, I wrote this almost immediately after the previous chapter, within the same day, so that's why. I wanted to pretty much get through the canon part of this arc, and I figured doing it in one chapter would be a way to go about it. It will still have consequences, though, don't you worry your pretty little heads.**

 **Anyways, I hope you enjoyed it, and I don't really have much to say until after the reviews, so let's dive right in!**

 **Guest: You'd be right in a lot of ways, there, and some of those are the reasons I decided to include a help system. Every game has it, so why not this one? It just makes a tad bit more sense, and makes it a little easier to write than just blind luck time and time again.**

 **Slenderbrine: You try writing witty chapter titles, then :P**

 **TypedSomeWords: I may or may not have forgotten to reread the previous chapter, concerning whether or not Jaune was going to use diplomacy. Oh well. At least, as you said, intimidation would definitely be a half measure. I appreciate that you agree in regards to the diversity of the skillset, and yes, I have a few binding/trapping spells in the works. Seriously, there are so many skills. Over 100 skills total at the moment, and it keeps getting bigger. Feel free to suggest some, though!**

 **dwramsey99: Haven't played Stanley Parable, though I've heard many a good thing about it over the years. Considering some of my favourite humour is Douglas Adams-esq, I guess I should probably give it a shot.**

 **Well, not too many this week, but that makes sense, given that nothing really happened. Hey, also, I wrote a new thing, just a little experimental thing I'm testing the waters with. It won't be replacing Systema, gods no, but check it out if you haven't already. Never A Hero is a title that somehow hadn't been used, either. Strange.**

 **I'm also on twitter at fat_flying, and beta-ing for Aros R. Cao, so either go follow me if you want, or go check out her fic.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	15. Startling Revelations

**Well, I know that the last chapter was a dip in my usual quality. So, here, have a double-length chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

"So, let me get this straight. You guys went out of your way to pick a fight with the White Fang, for the sole reason of not finding the White Fang?"

Yang had a remarkable way of repeating what Jaune and Blake had explained in a way that reduced it into a single, nonsensical sentence that made no coherent attempt at basic logic.

Regardless, it seemed the most apt way of putting it, so Jaune just sighed and nodded, exasperated at the couple minutes he and Blake had spent explaining the situation from the previous night.

"Well, I'm glad we could help, even if we didn't really do much," Ruby said, and Jaune gave her a smile.

"I wouldn't say you didn't do anything, Ruby. You guys helped me narrow down where Blake was hiding. I've been contractually obliged not to mention the word scaredy-cat, though, so I've decided not to say it."

Blake punched him in the arm, leveling a glare for good measure.

"So, it's all sorted?" Ren asked, a concerned expression gracing his usually relaxed face.

"Yes, thank you Ren. I'm sorry all this happened, and I'm sorry to have bothered you all," Blake said, apologising.

"Aw, Blakey, it was nothing!" Nora and Yang chorused, before swapping amused glances.

"Seriously, though, Blake, we'd do it again for you. AWBN's our sister team, and you're our friend," Ruby said.

"Wait, sister team?" Jaune asked, momentarily drawn away from the admittedly sweet moment that was playing out in front of him.

"Well, yeah. Brother team just sounds weird."

Jaune gaped. "What about sibling team?"

Ruby shook her head. "Nah, still sounds weird. Don't worry though, Jaune, we'll consider you an honorary girl!"

Jaune stared in mute shock, and Ren offered him a nonchalant shrug. "Don't fight it, honorary sister. Us honorary sisters must stick together in these trying times."

"Well, where are Weiss and Pyrrha?" Ruby asked.

"Weiss is still coming to terms with our, erm, situation, and Pyrrha is doing her best to work her through it, as the most neutral, least aggravating member of our team. Sidenote, I'm aggravating, apparently." Jaune explained.

"I'd actually agree with Weiss, there. You are pretty aggravating," Blake interjected.

"Says the girl I've had to rescue multiple times when she threw herself in danger recklessly."

"Says the guy who blundered about a Grimm-infested forest and distracted me."

"Technically, your being distracted was entirely your own fault. And you decided to solo Roman Torchwick and all his White Fang grunts without any backup, a plan, or anything."

Blake shut her mouth, frowning grumpily as the comeback she'd been preparing died on her lips.

"Speaking of solo-ing Roman Torchwick, what happened to him?" Ruby asked, and Jaune rounded a curious gaze on his younger fellow leader.

"Uh, he escaped in a Bullhead," Jaune replied succinctly.

"Damn, same. That sucks."

Jaune and Blake both tilted their heads in confusion.

"Didn't I tell you? Either of you? I swear I did… I got into Beacon early because I fought and nearly captured Torchwick when he was robbing a Dust store in downtown Vale," Ruby explained.

"Huh," Jaune said.

Blake seemed to non-verbally echo his sentiments.

"Well, we'll get him next time!" Ruby cheered.

Five people stared at Ruby.

"Um, what? Ruby, what do you mean next time?" Jaune asked.

"Well, we've got to stop him, don't we? He's a bad guy, and we're the good guys."

Jaune frowned.

"Ruby, it isn't so black and white out there. We can't just stop Torchwick. We'd have to find him, and be strong enough to stop him, amongst other things. Besides, I'm pretty sure Blake and I were inches away from getting expelled, and neither of us have seen Sun since Goodwitch dragged him off to a torture chamber, dorm room, either or," Jaune said, shuffling in his seat on the couch.

"Well, I don't know about the rest of you, but I'm with Ruby. Torchwick needs to be stopped," Yang said, placing a hand on her younger sister's shoulder.

"Yeah, I can break his legs!" Nora cheered, and Ren, outvoted by popular majority and uncaring about the result, nodded agreement.

"Well, uh, I guess RRYN will be helping us, Blake. We should probably tell the others, I guess."

Blake sighed.

* * *

Weiss was frustrated. So was Pyrrha, but neither were for the same reason.

Weiss was trying to get over years and years of inborn racism and hatred that had been practically brainwashed into her as she was raised.

Pyrrha was trying not to lose control of her semblance and crush every metal object in the dorm buildings as she realised exactly to what extent Weiss's mental ' _training'_ , if it could be called that, reached.

Jacques Schnee. Pyrrha had always heard negative things concerning the man, and even the smallest, least private thing about the man that Weiss revealed sent quivers of rage down Pyrrha's spine.

Pyrrha wasn't the kind of person to get angry. She'd been told hundreds of times that public image was as important as skill in combat, and it was apparent that she and Weiss had similar lessons, though Weiss's were done by a racist, megalomaniacal monopolizing business dictator without morals, and Pyrrha's were done by her friendly, well-meaning agent.

So it was well within her right to be mad.

The elder Schnee hadn't raised children, he'd raised programs. It was only Weiss' leaving Atlas that helped her get even this far into breaking that densely programmed shell that cruel man had put into place.

Blake, ironically, had done nothing but help. She'd effectively lured Weiss into believing a false sense of security, shattered it, and then given Weiss two options.

Buckle and side with her father, or accept her partner for who she was.

Pyrrha was just glad that Weiss wasn't completely brainwashed.

"I just… I can't, Pyrrha. I want to, I really do, but every time I see her, I remember all these things, these little memories I'd long forgotten. Every time I see her, it just… hurts. It makes my head hurt, and I hear his voice, and I just want to forget it."

Pyrrha could feel her heart slowly but surely breaking.

"Weiss…"

"No! I… I have to toughen up, push through it, bottle it up, divert it, something! I can't be like him, Pyrrha, I won't. I… I can do this. I think."

Pyrrha watched as the platinum-haired heiress paced about the dorm room, tense expression on her face.

"I can't let him win, Pyrrha, but I can't let him lose either. If he wins, I'm without a team, and if he loses, I'm without the SDC, the one thing I'm working towards!"

Pyrrha picked up on that. "Why?"

It seemed to snap Weiss out of her mental overload, at least. "Why what?"

"Why is it the one thing you're working towards?" Pyrrha reiterated.

"It's… You know that the SDC runs on cheap, unsafe Faunus labour and almost-illegal business deals. I want to be in charge, to make it better for all those who work for it. It isn't fair for the SDC to be a monopoly, it isn't fair for them to practically force Faunus into those mines, and yet…"

"Your father convinced you that that was how business had to be conducted," Pyrrha finished.

"Exactly. Pyrrha, out of all of us, you're the closest to understanding my situation, even if our comparisons aren't anywhere close. What would you do?"

Pyrrha closed her eyes, thinking deeply for a moment.

"What would it take for you to no longer be the heiress, Weiss?" Pyrrha asked.

"I'm not sure. It depends on the severity of the offense, and the severity of Father's mood," Weiss replied.

"So, why does it have to be a competition, and I know, that's a little ironic coming from me. Why not just accept Blake for who she is, and just not mention it to your father?"

Weiss's mouth opened and closed as the words she tried to say failed to escape any further than her head.

"If your father doesn't know, then what's the problem?" Pyrrha asked, and Weiss slumped into her bed.

"I… I don't know," Weiss admitted.

"Besides, Blake still owes us a more detailed explanation," Pyrrha said, and Weiss whipped her head around. "I know you said you didn't want to hear it, but Jaune and I are still concerned. We've been waiting for you, though, not that it's a problem you trying to wrap your head around all this. We understand it can be a little… strange."

Weiss would've chuckled, were she that kind of person. "Strange, Pyrrha? This is strange? I like Blake well enough, she's my partner, but calling an ex-terrorist strange is a little bit of an understatement. I'd like to consider it world-shattering at least."

Weiss didn't get to compound on her previous statement, however, as the knock on the door to their dorm saved her from digging herself a deeper hole.

"Yes?" The platinum-blonde asked, only to be answered when the door opened, revealing those they were speaking of.

"Hello Jaune, Blake."

Weiss's voice was stiff, but Jaune simply shrugged it aside, likely chalking it up to nerves.

"Hey Weiss. You ready for us all to figure all this out?" Their leader asked, taking a seat on his bed.

Blake stepped over the threshold and quietly shut the door behind her as Weiss thought about her answer.

"Yes. I… believe I am ready," came her answer, and Jaune gave a comforting smile.

"Okay. So, Blake, where do you want to start?"

Blake eyed her leader for a moment, before taking a seat on his bed, next to him, a similar distance between the two, something Pyrrha was doing with Weiss.

"It would probably be best if we started at the beginning."

* * *

"The White Fang was not always the organisation it is today. It was once a group of peaceful protesters, rebelling against corrupt governments that continued to discriminate against the Faunus," Blake began.

"My father, Ghira Belladonna, was the leader, the head of the White Fang when it was peaceful. He was responsible for the governments acknowledging that Faunus had the same rights as humanity, and when that came, he stepped down, deciding to focus on his role as Menagerie's chieftain, and his family."

Jaune, Weiss and Pyrrha listened closely, for the first time getting information about their mysterious teammates past.

"My father taught me about right and wrong, about good and bad, and every example he used was of his past experience. Nothing he said was about humanity as a whole, but about individuals amongst the humans. As time went on, the White Fang continued, my father still attended various meetings concerning the White Fang, but he no longer lead it. That role had been passed down to a woman by the name of Sienna Khan, the current leader of the White Fang."

Jaune noticed Weiss's knuckles clench, fists bound tight.

"Sienna Khan… She thought that my father hadn't gone far enough. She thought that peaceful protests and boycotts weren't doing enough. She kept pushing, and pushing, and the White Fang reached a point where the violence became more commonplace."

Blake's face was contorted in sadness.

"My parents decided to completely leave the White Fang at this point, but I didn't want to abandon my people. I couldn't, because I thought it was working. Sienna and my mentor, the two of them were the people I looked up to the most aside from my parents. I…"

Blake trailed off, and Jaune, Pyrrha and even Weiss waited for her to continue.

"I ran away from home, and joined my mentor on his mission to lead the White Fang's Vale branch. I became their second in command, the scout, the infiltrator. Anything I could do to help, or to impress my mentor. I don't even remember when it stopped being about the rights of Faunus and became the subjugation of humanity. It kind of just… did."

Blake, at this point, had closed her eyes, hands balled into fists.

"It wasn't until just before Beacon started this year that I truly realised the depth of the mistake I'd made. We were robbing a train for Dust, I don't know why, when my mentor and I faced off against a massive Atlesian mech. It nearly got us, but my mentor held it off."

A single tear welled in the corner of Blake's now open eyes, amber glare intensely leveled at the ground.

"He handed me explosives, told me to place them. I asked about the passengers, and his only response was 'what about them'. I… I couldn't, there was no way I could do that sort of thing. So, I cut the car, using the time I had to get as far away as possible. I didn't have anywhere to go, anywhere to stay, and no money to my name, and I hadn't even made it to Vale when I bumped into Jaune."

Blake glared at Jaune, making the teen wince. "Well, he bumped into me, anyway. I figured that Beacon would be the safest place for me to stay, and so I did just that."

The silence stretched on for a moment after Blake finished.

"Well, at least I know what you were doing in the middle of the Emerald Forest," Jaune remarked. "I've only waited a few months to find that out."

Blake rounded on her leader. "Really? That's all you've got to say?"

Jaune gulped, before becoming more serious. "It's just… all of you have such interesting history, so much talent and passion for the things that you love. Pyrrha's a world champion tournament fighter, you're an ex-revolutionary-turned-terrorist, and Weiss is the heiress to the biggest conglomerate on Remnant, and then there's just me. Just Jaune Arc, the guy who didn't even have a semblance until just before he got to Vale."

"Blake, I just have one question. Who was your mentor?"

Weiss's voice cut through any emotion that had been in the air, leaving the room once more cold.

Blake resumed her stare at the ground. "A-Adam Taurus."

The moment the name left her mouth Weiss was up on her feet, pacing back and forth.

"He… he never used to be like this, Weiss, I swear. He and I grew up together, he taught me how to fight. I was so blind, I didn't see he was changing. That he'd changed."

Blake's words seemed to pass right by Weiss.

"My father spoke of the White Fang at length. One name that came up very, very often was Ghira Belladonna. Another was Sienna Khan. The third, the one he spoke with the most venom, was Adam Taurus," Weiss said, still pacing.

"For years, my father ranted and raved about Taurus. 'That beast is nothing but a nuisance' he would say. 'Another member of the board dead' he'd say." Weiss sat back down on the bed.

They weren't good people. I knew that. I know that. But they were still people. They had families, they had loved ones. And Taurus took that away. And you were his student?"

The pure accusatory tone that Weiss's voice had made Blake wince.

"I didn't know, Weiss. If I had've, we would be having a very different conversation. I… I think I loved him. I was so blind to his faults, so blind to the misdeeds, the misgivings, that I just didn't see it. I'm sorry," Blake said, head in her hands.

Pyrrha and Jaune shared a glance.

"Blake, it isn't me you need to apologise to!" Weiss exclaimed, making all three of her teammates look to her in shock. "Honestly, if Taurus had killed my father, I'd probably not be all that sad about it! It's the people who were good, the innocent lives that he's taken! They're who you have to apologise to!"

"Honestly, my father is an irredeemable monster, Blake! But I'm not like him, I can't be like him! I'm trying so damn hard not to be like him, to be my own person, but you keep making it more and more difficult! I can't just look past this as if it didn't happen!" Weiss was back on her feet again, this time standing right in front of Blake.

Blake didn't reply, still stunned.

"Look, normally I'd be the voice of reason if all else failed. If Jaune suggested something dumb, normally Pyrrha would veto it. If it went past Pyrrha, it would be vetoed by Blake, and if it got past Blake somehow, I'd be the last line of defense, but you, you…"

Blake looked back up at Weiss, as the girl struggled for words. "You… you skipped all the steps, and just jumped right in, consequences be damned! You can't do that, we're a team! If Jaune couldn't get that through your thick skull, I don't know how I'll be able to, but I'm sure as hell going to try!"

It was the most infuriated Jaune had ever seen the heiress.

"And the biggest problem is that now I can't be the voice of reason, because the White Fang and Roman Torchwick are stealing my stuff!"

Jaune released a gasp of air in pure shock.

"What?" The three chorused, surprised.

Weiss glanced around. "Did you seriously not expect me to be angry about that? The Dust Roman and the White Fang are stealing is SDC property! I wouldn't be a very good heiress if I just let that slip by me without a care!"

Jaune stood up, and leaned against the wall. "Weiss, you aren't seriously suggesting what I think you are, are you?"

"Oh, so Blake can go out and pick fights, but the moment I try and act like a rational huntress and gather information before I do so suddenly I'm out of line?" Weiss exclaimed, rounding on the boy.

Pyrrha took that moment to voice her opinion. "Weiss makes a good point, Jaune. The police haven't been able to find anything of the White Fang or Roman Torchwick, and so far only RRYN and ourselves have been able to at least somewhat prevent them from committing the crimes they're trying so hard to commit. Why shouldn't we continue to help?"

Jaune gave a nervous chuckle. "Okay, something is seriously wrong if I'm trying to be the voice of reason. You guys really want to do this? It's going to be really dangerous."

The three determined expressions that stared back at him answered that question.

Jaune decided that now was the time to bite the bullet.

So, Jaune took in a deep breath. "Well… If we're putting ourselves in danger, I guess there isn't much of a worry about you guys knowing about my semblance after all. Let's go somewhere… a little more open, and a lot more private."

* * *

Jaune was back in what he was beginning to call his clearing, at the edge of the Emerald Forest, just near Beacon's cliffs.

Accompanying him were the three curious members of his team, all intrigued as to what Jaune's semblance was.

"Before we start, a couple things. First, I want you guys to keep an open mind. Second, though I might've already mentioned this before, but Ozpin pretty much told me to only tell those I trusted implicitly. He may not have actually said that, but that's pretty much what I've decided he's said, and damn the consequences, you guys deserve to know."

The three girls stared at Jaune.

"Okay, so… I don't really know how to explain it without sounding… ridiculous, I guess. It's, uh…"

"Just get on with it, Arc!" Weiss exclaimed.

"My semblance makes me into a video game character!" Jaune blurted out.

The silence seemed to stretch on for agonizingly long moments.

"...Huh," Blake said.

Weiss seemed to be lost for words.

"Um…" Pyrrha said aloud, before blinking a few times. "What?"

Jaune sighed. "I did say it was going to sound ridiculous. My semblance makes my life pretty much into a video game. I get quests, I have an inventory, I have a health bar. That sort of thing."

"Jaune, I'm not exactly… familiar with video games. Neither is Weiss, and I doubt Blake had that much time to play them, so... " Pyrrha said.

Jaune laughed. In fact, that statement had caught Jaune so off guard that he continued to laugh, the mirth he felt somewhat expounded by the sheer awkwardness of the situation.

"Okay, okay, so no one has played a video game before?" Jaune asked, once he'd recovered.

A muted shake of the head from Weiss was the only response he got from the heiress, and Pyrrha and Blake both shared a glance, before they also shook their heads.

"Oh, gods, this is odd. How do I…" Jaune began, trailing off into thought.

"Perhaps you'd best just show us what you mean, Jaune," Pyrrha suggested.

Jaune agreed, nodding a thanks to his partner. "Yeah, you're right. Now, stab me."

Pyrrha blinked. Blake blinked. Weiss plunged the tip of Myrtenaster into where he was pointing, the softest part of his thigh.

A sharp intake of breath was evidence enough that the blade had gone right through, Jaune not even bothering to bring his Aura up to block the strike.

"I was hoping there'd be a little bit more resistance to the idea," he said through gritted teeth, as _System Body_ nullified the pain.

"Now, look at the wound, watch closely, it'll happen almost immediately after Weiss removes her rapier.

The other two, once they'd gotten over the shock of seeing Weiss stab their leader, looked close.

The blade left his thigh, and the wound healed almost instantly, not even leaving a scar.

"Tadah!" Jaune said, giving a small bow. "That's just one of the skills my semblance gives me access to. That did, however, drain a pretty significant portion of my HP, so please don't stab me again."

Jaune stepped back. "This is where I was yesterday, when I was figuring out some stuff. I was just learning new skills, trying them out."

Pyrrha raised her hand, and Jaune shot her a deadpan look, to which she looked sheepish. "You keep saying skills. That doesn't mean what we think it does, does it?"

"My semblance refers to them as skills. They're like spells of sorts, except some of them don't cost anything. I can cast spells like _Mana Bolt_ or _Mana Impact_ , _Observe_ things to find out information, give myself buffs, and one of my skills is a _Sixth Sense_ , which allows me, at the moment at least, to sense danger around me," Jaune explained.

"Buffs?" Blake asked, curious.

"My semblance pretty much acts like an RPG. I have stats which improve through extended use or skill points that I get through leveling up, and they directly correlate to my physical and mental prowess. One of my skills, for example, is called _System Body_ , which is what makes my body like that of a video game character, where wounds heal near instantly and I don't tire out easily. That's mostly dependent on my Endurance stat, which determines my health, stamina and Aura levels," Jaune began answering. "I can cast a Buff spell to temporarily boost a stat, though it only lasts a minute and at the moment isn't very powerful. I haven't had a chance to really use it yet, and the Buff amount is dependent on the level of the skill."

"There's also the _Proficiency_ skills that I have, that allow me to fight with my weapons. I'd never really fought with my weapons before my semblance awakened, so I wasn't very good, but my _One-Handed Melee_ is at level eleven at the moment, so that gives you an idea of what it's like."

Pyrrha stared gobsmacked. "You hadn't learned how to use your weapons until just before Beacon?"

Jaune scratched the back of his head nervously, as he was want to do. "Um, yeah, that about sums it up. My semblance gives me an incredible rate of improvement, that's for sure."

"And you can just… do all that," Weiss said.

"Yeah, kinda. I have to learn the skill first, and that's usually just a bit of trial and error, but yeah, once I've got it I can just use it whenever. Unless it costs something I don't have, or don't have enough of. All my attack spells cost Mana, like a magic meter sort of thing, and my Mana regenerates over time."

It was at that moment that Weiss decided to ask the important question. "So why did the headmaster tell you not to speak about it with anyone?"

Jaune's hands dropped to his side. "Ozpin said that anyone that knew about it might be in danger from powerful people who want to get their hands on it. It's a really powerful semblance, so I'm not surprised people would kill to get it."

Jaune's dejected expression seemed to garner pity from the girls, so he quickly shook away the lingering thoughts. "I've decided that we're strong enough as a team to stop anyone that tried that, though, so I'm putting my utmost faith in all of you. We're a team, all of us. If we can't do it, no one can."

That at least brought two small smirks and a smile to the faces of the white-haired, black-haired and red-haired girls respectively.

"So, you can just create spells?" Weiss asked. "What about glyphs?"

Jaune blanked. "Uh… I don't know?"

Weiss's face hardened into one of determination. "That sounds like something we should try. Right now."

"Eh-heh. Okay?"

* * *

"Again!" Weiss shouted, perfectly embodying the image of a terrifying drill instructor.

Jaune focused Mana into his hands much like Weiss did with her Aura, the girl channelling it through and creating a glyph of spinning white in the air in front of her.

Jaune tried doing the same, but all that happened was a _Mana Blast_ , the Mana dispersing once more into the air.

"No, you dunce! Move the Aura through you hand, and make it float in the air!" Weiss exclaimed, exasperated.

Jaune was beginning to become frustrated himself. "It isn't even Aura, Weiss, it's Mana! It's completely different! And besides, it doesn't float outside my body unless I relinquish my control of it! I can't just separate it and then form it!"

Pyrrha and Blake were sitting on an upturned log not too far away, neither particularly interested in the same thing they'd been doing for the past ten minutes.

"Argh! Then what do you suggest, Arc?" Weiss asked, hands on her hips.

Jaune felt himself calm down, thanks to _System Mind_. "Can you just… create a basic glyph, and let me look at it?"

Weiss did as he asked, holding her hand in front of her as a simple glyph spun into existence in her palm.

Jaune held his hand out much the same way she was, and decided to try something new. He focused Mana into his palm, but began to shape it, flattening it until it was around the same size and shape of the circular glyph.

"Now, let's see what this does," Jaune remarked, as he stared at the circle of flat Mana he held in his palm.

"Arc, that isn't going to make a glyph," Weiss said, but Jaune waved her off.

"I know, but it's a step in the right direction. Let's see…" With that, Jaune released the flat circle, only to see it hover in place just above his hand.

"Um…"

"Oh, that looks like a small version of my shield!" Pyrrha remarked from behind, attention grabbed by the new thing that was happening.

"Huh, so it does… Pyrrha, you genius!" Jaune jumped, partially from surprise and partially from joy.

"What? I am?" Pyrrha said, shocked, but she soon found out what Jaune meant, as he wound his arm back and threw, aiming towards a tree.

The disc soared through the air, before it bounced off the tree, leaving a shallow gouge, but as it bounced, Jaune, Weiss and Pyrrha tracked it through the air, as it bounced off another tree, another tree, a boulder, another tree, and finally back towards them.

The two girls cowered slightly, but Jaune simply outstretched his hand, instinct kicking in, and it landed back in his palm, none the worse for wear.

"Huh," Jaune said.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Disc (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now conjure a semi-permanent disc of Mana that can be thrown like a frisbee. It will bounce off most objects, and try its hardest to end up back in your hand. The more LCK you have, the more likely it is to end up back in your hand. Will stop bouncing after enough bounces. Costs 75 MP to cast._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

" _Mana Disc_ , huh. That's pretty neat, actually," Jaune remarked, as the two girls standing next to him stared at him.

His eyes refocused. "Oh, yeah, my semblance gives me these notification windows. Like glowing two-dimensional boxes only I can see. I was just reading the skill.

Pyrrha looked a little stunned, and Weiss just shook her head.

"So, what is a glyph, exactly?" Jaune asked, focusing his attention on his white-haired teammate.

Weiss pondered that question for a moment, trying to figure out exactly what to say.

"A glyph is… hmm. That's actually a rather difficult question. I don't think I can really quantify it in the terms of your semblance, Jaune. Maybe… The best way I could put it is one of your spells, if it was activated remotely. I prepare it, and cast it, much the way you do with your spells, except mine has all sorts of effects stemming from my semblance and the Dust I happen to have on hand, should I need it."

Weiss's explanation wasn't exactly crystal clear, but it was all Jaune needed to hear.

"Remote activation, huh? That gives me an idea…" Jaune said, trailing off.

In his hand he cast _Mana Flash_ , and in the other he formed a disc much like _Mana Disc_ , though he combined the two, bringing his hands together.

He knelt down, and placed his hands against the floor.

A moment passed, and a brief flash of Mana coloured energy escaped the cracks in his hands, and when he lifted them, he was greeted with a small white etching in the ground, glistening ever so slightly.

"Ah-ha!" Jaune cheered, stepping back. "Now, who wants to test it?"

Jaune turned to see who would be his test subject, only to find all three girls hiding not-so-subtly behind the upturned log.

Jaune gave a heavy sigh. "Well, if that's how it is. Close your eyes and ears, ladies, this might be really loud."

Blake immediately did so, hands covering her human ears as her bow seemed to completely fold over. Weiss and Pyrrha did the same, covering their ears as well.

Jaune turned back to face what was slowly becoming his nemesis, and he stepped forwards.

At least Jaune was prepared for what a _Mana Flash_ would be like this time around, and as his foot touched the sigil, even with his eyes shut tight and his ears clamped down, the white light that purveyed underneath his eyelids and the noise that wound its way through into his very skull was still unwelcome, and painful.

Luckily, thanks to _System Body_ , it didn't last very long, but it was till a second time in a couple days, and Jaune was rather unhappy about it.

But, every cloud has a silver lining, even if it did feel as if he was struck by lightning for this one.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Spell Sigil (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now form a remote triggered spell of any kind into a sigil, which can be placed on any surface, as long as the surface is big enough to house the sigil. The sigil, when activated, by whatever the trigger mechanism is, will cast the prepared spell. Costs 150% of target spell chosen._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

Another max level skill, too. That was good. It meant he could use it no matter what, he didn't have to level it up in conjunction with the spell to make it more effective.

Not that Jaune had dedicated all that much time to leveling skills, something he was beginning to regret more and more the more he thought about it.

And his stats, too…

Jaune blinked away the remaining light that remained in his eyes, the afterimage disappearing as his hearing returned to normal.

He turned to the rest of his team, a smile on his face, only to get smacked over the head.

"You dunce! That was way too loud! And too bright!" Weiss exclaimed, as Pyrrha supported a slightly dazed Blake, the two approaching slower.

"Sorry! At least I warned you. The first time I tried it was a lot more surprising," Jaune said, as Pyrrha stifled a giggle.

"Wait, you tried that on yourself?" Weiss asked, surprise on her face.

"Well, yeah. If I don't, how do I know what it does?" Jaune answered with a question of his own.

Weiss couldn't really come up with an answer to that.

"It's originally like a flashbang grenade, but this _Spell Sigil_ skill seemed to turn it into a flashbang landmine of sorts. It set off when I stepped on it, but I get the feeling it can do more than just trip from being stepped on," Jaune continued.

"Like a timed detonation?" Pyrrha asked, and Jaune nodded.

"Yeah, or a remote trigger. A tripwire might take some clever fiddling, but I imagine it wouldn't be all that hard to set up. The only problem I can see with it is how obvious it is. The glow fades after a few seconds, but it's still a white etching into the surface. It's easy to notice," Jaune said, thinking aloud.

"If you placed it on the ceiling, if there was one, you could set it off without it being noticeable. Same with walls, for that matter. I imagine a flashbang like that would be more effective in a more enclosed space, anyway. The sound would reverberate much more, and the light would be more pronounced," Pyrrha said, thinking along much the same lines as Jaune.

Blake, now recovered, leaned over to her own partner. "It might be in our best interest to distract the two, or they might never stop coming up with strategies they may never use."

Weiss hummed in agreement, as the other pair of AWBN members continued to consider the validity of remote detonated flashbangs.

"Jaune, you mentioned experimenting. Where do you get all these ideas from?" Weiss asked, Blake also leaning in, curiosity on her face.

"Well, it's mostly just me randomly trying different things with my Mana. When I finished off that Ursa, I used _Mana Impact_ , which I discovered by focusing Mana into my legs while I was in the air. _Mana Slash_ , when I use my sword as a focus, was created in the heat of the moment when I was in the Beacon acceptance exam," Jaune explained. "I've gotten a few other skills from quest rewards, and skill books too."

Weiss's face was that of sheer, blank lack of understanding.

"Oh, yeah, right. We should really sit down and play some video games, all of us. That might help me too, actually. Anyway, there are a few that I've used a few times now, and a couple I haven't even tried to use yet," Jaune continued, willing the skills list to appear before him.

He scrolled down with one hand, which confused his team, but he ignored it. Sooner or later they'd get used to it.

"Yeah, here we go. _Summoning_. I haven't tried it yet, so I don't know what it is, or what it entails."

"Summoning!?" Weiss exclaimed, eyes wide.

Jaune took a step back, hands in the air. "Yes?"

"Hmph. You can't create glyphs, as far as we know, but you can summon. That seems grossly unfair," Weiss said, partially to herself. "The Schnee semblance, one of its most powerful capabilities is that it allows us to summon defeated enemies."

Jaune nodded, following along. "Do you think I'll need to defeat things in order to summon them?"

Weiss threw up her hands in exasperation. "Arc, I barely understand your semblance this far, so I wouldn't say I have any idea on what would and wouldn't work. Trial and error seems to have been your ally thus far, why stop now?"

Jaune agreed. "True. Let me bring up the skill description, see if I can glean anything from it."

 **[** _ **Summoning Ritual (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can conduct a ritual that can allow you to summon something. What is summoned by the ritual is dependent on materials used._ **]**

Jaune read it aloud, frowning slightly. "That doesn't give me all that much to work with, to be honest. Most of my skills have been a little more… detailed."

Weiss put a finger to her chin in thought, and Pyrrha mirrored the expression. Blake seemed to delve into a book she'd procured from gods knew where.

Inspiration struck Jaune like a bolt of lightning on a stormy day, and he quickly opened a new window, accessing his inventory.

His hand reached in, and to the three spectators it looked as if Jaune withdrew a chunk of bronze metal from nothing, a slight ripple in the air the only trace of something abnormal going on.

The _Stymphalian Bronze Beak_ he'd collected from the Stymphalian now in his hand, he bent over, focusing Mana into his index finger as he began tracing a pattern he did not know, and yet subconsciously did.

Weiss, Blake and Pyrrha watched on in abject curiosity as Jaune sketched a small circle, before another concentric circle was etched into the ground. The pattern continued, becoming more and more complicated as more and more shapes were added, until not even Jaune could tell where it started and where it ended.

Once the pattern was complete, Jaune placed the item in the center, before stepping back. "Um, I don't know what this is going to do, so we might want to step back."

The others did so quite quickly, returning to the cover of the upturned tree.

He knelt, as he instinctively knew to do, and closed his eyes. For all intents and purposes, he was performing a ritual.

Blake, Weiss and Pyrrha watched in amazement as the etching began to glow, and so to did Jaune, both brightening further and further as magical energies began to swirl around, lifting the _Stymphalian Bronze Beak_ from the ground, the etching now an object, floating, spinning and simply existing amongst multiple dimensions all at once.

It ended as suddenly as it began, though this time it was with a bright flash of light.

Jaune, Weiss, Blake and Pyrrha opened their eyes, and stared at what had been summoned.

Where the beak had once been was now a small bird, heron like in appearance. Bone plating covered partially covered it, and it's beak and feathers were of a bronze like material.

An incredibly small Stymphalian stood where the beak had once been, though it had some apparent differences besides size.

The bronze beak and feathers were tipped with a much more golden colour, and the eyes were a bright blue, and Jaune could see the Arc family insignia almost carved into the bone plating on the forehead of the bird.

Jaune stepped forward, tentatively holding his arm out, and the small Stymphalian stretched its wings, a flight-assisted leap landing the bird on arm, settling comfortably.

 **[Summoning Ritual was a Success!]**

 **[You have summoned a Stymphalian Soul!]**

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Bound Soul (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now summon a Bound Soul that you have summoned with the Summoning Ritual. It can be summoned and dismissed at will._ _**Level MAX**_ **.]**

Jaune eyed the bird that shuffled up his arm, resting on his shoulder, using _Observe_ on it.

 **[Stymphalian Soul, Minor]**

 **[Bound Soul, Grimm]**

Jaune was a little confused by the bird, but as he reached his other hand out the bird craned its neck to meet his palm, the teen giving the bird a gentle rub under the head.

It chirped happily at the contact.

"Huh," Jaune remarked. There wasn't much else to say that he could realistically think of.

It appeared the three girls agreed with his sentiments.

* * *

"So… What do I name it?" Jaune asked, as the bird wrapped itself around his shoulders, somehow a familiar, comforting weight.

None of them knew how to answer, until Pyrrha decided to speak.

"What about… Alcmena?" She offered, and Jaune raised an eyebrow at her.

"It's an ancient Mistralian name, and seeing as the Stymphalian is a Grimm natively found in Mistral…"

Jaune smiled at his partner. "Alcmena… it fits. A female name, right?"

Pyrrha nodded.

"Well, seeing as Grimm don't have genders, I guess we'll just have to call her by her name's default, won't we?"

Alcmena chirped happily once more.

"Now, Alcmena, what can you do?"

The response was another chirp from the bird, and a series of notifications appearing in his periphery.

 **[You've earned a new Title!]**

 **[Soul Tamer Initiate:** _As a Soul Tamer Initiate, all Bound Souls are more effective._ _ **Next Rank: Soul Tamer Novice (Souls Bound 1/2)**_ **]**

 **[You've unlocked a new Perk!]**

 **[Sixth Labour:** _Your connection with the soul of a Stymphalian gives your melee attacks a chance to inflict the status effect Poisoned on attacks._ **]**

 **[You've unlocked new Skills!]**

 **[** _ **Bound Senses (Passive):**_ _Thanks the the System, whenever your Bound Soul is summoned, your senses link with theirs, allowing you to mentally 'see' your Bound Soul, track their location, and understand them._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

 **[** _ **Soul Scout (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, your Bound Soul can track and locate targets, giving you a sense of the target location as long as your Bound Soul is still aware of the target's position._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

"Woah, that's pretty useful. I feel like we're going to get along swimmingly, Alcmena," Jaune said, giving the bird a gentle rub underneath the head.

The bird, at Jaune's command, took off, large wings, or at least large to relative scale, flapping as it took off, steadily gaining altitude.

"You tamed a Grimm."

Jaune looked at Blake, who was still somewhat shocked.

"I guess?" He offered. "I wouldn't exactly say tamed, but… yeah, I guess tamed works."

"I honestly don't know where to begin," Blake said, shaking her head, a rueful smile on her face.

"Yes, yes, team bonding, hooray, can we please focus on the fact that Jaune's Grimm is just orbiting around us?" Weiss exclaimed.

Jaune held a hand up, gesturing for the heiress to calm down. "Relax, Weiss. Alcmena is completely tame, and she is too small to be a combat threat to any of us anyway. She's scanning around for hostiles, at the moment. Nothing yet, in case you were curious."

"How can you tell?" The underlying worry in Weiss's voice made Jaune take the question seriously.

His arm stretched out, and Weiss watched as Alcmena soared down from the sky, slowing and landing on his arm once more. "One of the Skills I was given, _Bound Senses_ , allows me to understand Alcmena's mind. I understand her emotions, her thoughts, no matter how simple. Besides, she may have the appearance of a Grimm, but I don't think that's what she is. It's… hard to explain."

With another stroke under the chin, Alcmena took off, although as the spectators watched, the bird began to simply disintegrate, splitting apart into a black mist.

"What just…" Pyrrha asked.

"Don't worry, I just dismissed her. I can summon and de-summon at will," Jaune answered. "Come on, we should head back. It's getting late."

Mid-afternoon wasn't all that late in the grand scheme of things, but Jaune knew two things.

First, he'd just dumped a lot of information on his team, and they needed some time to dwell on it.

Secondly, he was really hungry.

* * *

Jaune could feel the terror flooding through his body, coming in waves as he trembled, hands shaking as the cool evening air breezed over him.

In his hand, his new scroll sat, contacts open, his finger hovering above the screen.

' _All you're doing is calling your family, Jaune. You aren't declaring war on a foreign kingdom, you're just speaking with your parents,'_ He thought, finger inching closer and closer to the screen.

He bit the bullet, pressing the button.

One ring, two rings, three rings…

"Hello? Who is this?"

The fourth ended mid-ring, the voice of Juniper Arc answering.

Jaune's mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water.

"Hello? Hello?"

"Hey, mum," Jaune began.

"Jaune, darling, you are in so much trouble."

* * *

 **Well, that was a long one, but considering the content, splitting the chapter didn't seem like a smart idea. Not much else for me to say in this end-note, so let's move onto reviews!**

 **SnapDragon21: Yeah, the previous chapter is lacking, and whilst that's primarily my fault, I do want to push a tiny bit of blame onto the canon, and my struggle of incorporating something that you all have no doubt read or watched hundreds of times. Luckily, we start moving further away from such on-rails sequences, and into more combat-oriented events, canon or not. And is he going to get bitten in the ass for showing his capabilities? Stay tuned!**

 **adislt: Granted, Blake misses the entire conversation with Cinder in canon, so its pretty forgivable for her not to realise they were working with Torchwick, and we know that that happened the night before the train robbery, but I won't be hating on any characters out of personal spite. I am a massive fan of every character in RWBY, hell, even the ones we know next to nothing about, so there won't be any character-bashing.**

 **LordGhostStriker: You're pretty spot on with that. Blake is an interesting character for a number of reasons, but the majority of canon seems to miss the mark in regards to how to deal with her. Especially in the later volumes, but it's neither here nor there.**

 **TalonIbnLaAhad: I'm glad to hear you like this so much! I agree, there's a whole bunch of less-than-average quality Gamer fics out there, and ones that have immense popularity despite some glaring flaws. But hey, sometimes its fun to read about a character that can kill things with a thought and then relax into a bed made entirely of attractive females, as long as they don't try and have a meaningful message or complex plot. Politics and self-fulfillment never mix.**

 **Slenderbrine: Okay, name this chapter. Go on, I dare you.**

 **Boongdaba: I'm going to level with you. Not only do I remember making a Monty Python reference, laughing at it because I'm lame enough to laugh at my own jokes, and then continuing to write, I don't remember what it was, and reading back through the chapter I can't spot it. I'm very tired.**

 **Guest: I know which forest is which, don't you worry. They connect, and as such, travelling from the Forever Fall to Vale requires you to pass through the Emerald Forest. See, world-building at its finest.**

 **MagneticDucky: Added to the Skill List, which has gotten so big holy crap help.**

 **Blackgold Night: I'd love for you to explain your reasoning as to thinking this. What purpose would it serve? I'd love to hear your thoughts!**

 **Master DK: Technically, nothing is stopping Jaune from creating a Chain Lightning skill using Fire Affinity. So...**

 **TypedSomeWords: The Bullheads aren't armed, are they? I didn't think they were in canon, at least. Also, honestly, now I have half a mind to add a reprogrammed Penny into the future plot. Don't tempt me.**

 **Well, that about does it for reviews this week, thanks for all the support!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	16. Familial Mercy

**So, um, there are a lot of you now. We breached 1k followers, so thank you all so much for your support, and there'll be a few extra notes at the end of the chapter. As such, enjoy!**

* * *

"So, it's the start of the semester break tomorrow… do you guys have anything planned?" Jaune asked his team from his seat on his bed.

"I don't exactly have anywhere to go," Blake said from within her book, head buried deep into the text.

"I don't have any definitive plans, Jaune," Pyrrha said, from where she was sharpening Milo.

"I'd rather not go back to Atlas for two weeks, especially after the past few days," Weiss said, going over her notes.

"Well, that's good, because I… might've-kind-of-told-my-parents-you-would-come-with-me-to-see-them?" Jaune spat out.

Three deadpan stares met Jaune's nervous gaze.

"Say that again, but slowly, Arc," Weiss ordered.

"I haven't spoken to my parents since I left for Beacon, and they weren't exactly happy about that. I told them I'd be coming home for the break, and I said I might bring you guys along if you weren't busy. And, because you aren't busy, I'm requesting that you act as motivational support for me when my parents find out I went to Beacon instead of a random non-Hunter academy," Jaune explained.

"You… let me get this straight. You told your parents that you were going to a school that _wasn't_ a Hunter Academy?" Blake asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Even I couldn't advocate that kind of decision, Jaune," Pyrrha said.

"There's a reason why I'm not the voice of reason normally!" Jaune exclaimed.

"But lying to your parents? Surely you didn't think you could get away with it?" Pyrrha asked, shocked.

"I mean, I didn't exactly expect them to never notice, but I had to try. They don't have a choice but to accept my decision now, regardless of how much they may or may not disapprove, and I'm certain they'll be happy that I met all of you, even if I had to betray their trust to do so. They're very protective, so... " Jaune explained, trailing off at the expressions on his team's faces.

"Oh, don't be like that. Pyrrha's probably got the most normal family situation out of all of us!" Jaune exclaimed, both hands gesturing towards the girl.

All the heads in the room turned to Pyrrha. "Well, he isn't wrong…"

"So, don't be all angry with me! I at least called my parents, and I'm willing to face the consequences. Yeah, I'd prefer if my team was with me to back me up, but it wouldn't be the end of the world if you were busy. I'd still go," Jaune said, taking his scroll out of his pocket.

"I can book airship tickets, so if you want to come, just let me know," Jaune said, and with that, he booked himself a ticket back home.

"I'd be happy to come meet your family, Jaune," Pyrrha said, a beaming smile on her face.

"I don't have anything better to do," Blake said, her noncommittal response the closest thing Jaune was going to get to a 'yes'.

Jaune looked to Weiss.

"Ugh. I don't particularly want to be left behind. It might mean I'd have to spend time with RRYN. I suppose I will accompany the rest of you," Weiss said with a huff, folding her arms. "But that doesn't mean we will be slacking off! The break is a perfect opportunity to train and grow our skills as Hunters."

Jaune nodded in muted agreement, booking the fourth and final ticket on the airship.

"Tomorrow, ten in the morning. That's the departure time. You might want to pack tonight, or tomorrow morning, whenever. I'm going to take Weiss's advice, and head to the training gym. I'll catch you guys later," Jaune said, ducking out of the room.

The chorus of varying degrees of farewell followed him down the hallway as he placed one foot in front of the other, making his way to the gym.

It wasn't that far a walk, nothing at Beacon ever really was, and when he arrived, he could tell he wouldn't be alone for the training period.

The door opened with a pneumatic hiss, sliding to allow him entry, and Jaune saw Yang look to the side from her place at the punching bags to the far left of the room.

She waved hello before resuming her sweaty workout, fists pounding a staccato rhythm into the bag.

He waved back, unwilling to do any more to disturb the brawler, and he dropped some of the gear he'd been carrying on a seat next to a treadmill, stepping up onto it and turning it on.

The conveyor belt underneath him began to speed up, and Jaune stepped onto it, walking in time to the belt.

It began to speed up, and Jaune did the same, keeping pace as the speed ramped up further and further.

The sound of his thumping footfalls accompanied the steady pounding of Yang, and the two blond-haired teens kept at it.

Jaune could feel _Sprint_ trigger when the treadmill reached a certain threshold of speed, and his feet pounded the material of the treadmill one after another, loud enough and fast enough to draw Yang's attention.

The blonde leaned back from the punching bag, grabbing a small towel and dabbing the sweat off her forehead as she watched the leader of AWBN steadily increase his pace to a point where he'd give any first year a modest competition, aside from Ruby, naturally.

According to the speedometer on the control panel of the treadmill, Jaune was maintaining an easy speed of twenty-seven kilometers an hour, something that Yang was impressed with. The boy may have looked lanky, but he was surprisingly well built.

The treadmill began to wind down, slowing as Jaune continued to match its pace, slowing at the same rate.

After a time, Jaune stepped off, grabbing his own small towel and doing much the same as Yang, wiping his face clean of the sweat that dripped off his face.

"Woah, that's got me wiped for a minute or two. Hey Yang, you just finishing up?" Jaune barely managed to force the words out through pants, as he felt his SP rise, slowly but steadily.

Yang shook her head. "Nah, I'm just taking a quick break. I gotta say, you got some speed to ya, Jauney."

Jaune gave a laugh, his stamina almost completely recovered. "Yeah, maybe. I figured I'd get some training in before I head back home for the break, though. I'm guessing you and Ruby are headed home for the holiday?"

Yang gave a nod as she finished half the bottle of water she'd brought along. "Yeah, Ruby decided that all of RRYN would be coming back to Patch for the week or two. Ren and Nora don't really have anywhere else to go, and Dad's looking forward to meeting the two."

"My condolences for whatever Nora does," Jaune said with a chuckle, and Yang laughed.

"Dad dealt with myself and Ruby learning our semblances. If he can't handle Nora, not even Ren could."

"True," Jaune agreed. "How does he do it, I wonder?"

Yang stepped back over to the punching bags. "Apparently, pancakes. Lots and lots of pancakes. Also, between you and me, I'm pretty sure Nora is crushing hard on Ren."

Jaune nodded in agreement. "I can see that. It'd certainly make sense."

Yang's fist met the bag with a resounding thud, but there was no follow-up punch. "Hey, Jaune… wanna spot for me?"

Jaune raised an eyebrow. "I like my arms where they are, thanks."

Yang rolled her eyes. "I'm won't go hard on you, you baby."

"Alright then. If you insist." Jaune stepped into the small ring in the corner of the gym, grabbing some mitts and slipping them over his hands.

Yang stepped inside, facing him, her bare fists wrapped in bandages.

"Old habits?" Jaune asked, gesturing to the girl's hands.

Yang flexed her fingers. "Something like that. You know the calls?"

Jaune nodded. "One of my sisters fought hand-to-hand, and I trained with her a couple times when I was younger. I can probably remember them."

Yang nodded, raising her clenched fists in a loose guard. "Whenever you're ready, Jauney."

Jaune called the first call, and a jab smacked into the mitt on his hand, driving his arm back as he felt the impact.

Another call, and a jab impacted, followed by a cross.

This continued for a while, and soon both Yang and Jaune were sweaty once more, arms aching.

The final combination of blows, a jab-cross-jab-uppercut, came and went, and Jaune took off the mitts, as Yang unwrapped her hands.

"You're pretty good as a training partner. Nora'd get distracted, and Ruby and Ren wouldn't be able to take my punches. We should do this again sometime," Yang said, as she stepped out of the ring, grabbing her bottle of water and draining the rest down her throat.

Jaune nodded with a weak smile on his face, chugging the full bottle he'd been yet to touch up to that point. "Only if we can swap."

Yang raised an eyebrow at that. "I thought you fought with a sword and shield?"

"No harm in learning how to fight without them," Jaune replied, dabbing at his forehead with the slowly but steadily dampening towel.

"True. Now if only you could convince Ruby of that," Yang remarked, and Jaune gave a laugh.

"Separate Ruby from Crescent Rose? That sounds painful for all involved."

Yang nodded in mirthful agreement. "Well, Jauney, just hit me up if you wanna train. I could always use a good punching bag."

Jaune smirked at that. "Careful, Yang. One of these days we might be matched up in combat class. Who knows who'll win a fight like that?"

Yang placed one hand on her hip. "Pfft. If you beat me in combat class, I'll… I'll be your slave for a week."

Jaune's smirk turned devious. "Oh? That sounds like a bet, Yang. You aren't going to like the odds…"

Yang laughed. "If you lose, though, you're my slave for a week. Like those odds?"

Jaune held out a hand, and Yang took it in a firm grasp, the two shaking to signify the agreement.

"No going back now, Jauney."

"Wouldn't dream of it."

* * *

Once Yang had left Jaune in the relative privacy of the boy's locker room, Jaune checked the notifications he'd dismissed once they'd finished training.

 **[Ding!]**

 **[Thanks to extensive training, you've gained +2 END, +1 STR and +1 AGI!]**

 **[For exceeding 25 END, you've been awarded a perk!]**

 **[** _ **Resilience:**_ _Thanks to your Endurance, you have gained a small amount of complete damage resistance, meaning you can take more hits, and are more physically resistant to damage and physical status effects._ **]**

Well, Jaune was happy with that. He didn't know why he hadn't taken better advantage of the training facilities Beacon offered, though that might've just been because he was almost always under the never-ending assail of homework.

Beacon was supposed to teach students how to be Hunters, not teach them history, but apparently Doctor Oobleck disagreed with that statement vehemently. In fact, when Cardin had said something along those lines the hyperactive man had made the teen do six weeks of essays.

Jaune had wisely not voiced his opinion, something the majority of his cohort had done as well.

Half the time Jaune felt pity for the poor boy, but then his mind wandered back to the incident in the Forever Fall, and that pity vanished like water in a desert.

Jaune pulled his hoodie over his head, settling it and pushing his hair out of his face, stepping out of the locker room.

Crocea Mors was settled in its place in his locker, and Jaune was relaxed. More relaxed than he had been in a few days, at least.

His life had a way of getting really, really crazy in the span of a few seconds.

Speaking of really crazy, he still had one notification he hadn't looked at yet.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Combat Class: Yang Xiao Long**_ **]**

 **[Defeat Yang Xiao Long in Combat Class, and win the bet you made with her.]**

 **[Reward: 5000 XP, Skill Book]**

So, he'd get a skill book and five thousand XP, along with Yang as a slave for a week. That was far too much power for a hormonal teen like Jaune, even if there was no way he'd actually take advantage of a friend. Or anyone, for that matter.

Of course, the fact that he wouldn't do anything like that didn't stop his mind from conjuring images unbidden. Images that he really had mixed feelings towards.

He shook his head to clear his mind and focus on the present, which was his path to the cafeteria, planning on finding some kind of food to feast on. He'd worked up an appetite, and he had to say that food was definitely much more wanted than Yang at his feet, workin-

No, focus. Clear mind, clean thoughts. No power-trips, nothing like that.

' _Stop it, Jaune. Focus, maintain, clear. Clear mind, clear thoughts, clear conscience,'_ the boy thought, as he stepped through the door to the bustling noise of the cafeteria in full swing, the line for lunch thankfully not that long. It appeared some students had already headed out to gods-knew-where, taking advantage of their day off to get away from the school.

Jaune was thankful for the noise, it distracted him from his thoughts, and he would welcome any more distractions, unless they were in the form of Yang doing whatever suggestive thing she could in order to throw off his mental stability.

"Hey, Jaune!" Ruby called out from her seat at their usual spot.

"Oh thank the gods!" Jaune exclaimed, before realising he'd just vocalised that thought.

"What's wrong?" Ruby asked, confused, as the teen approached her.

"No, nothing, nevermind," Jaune quickly tried to cover up his mistake with pure charisma.

"Are you sure? You sounded a little freaked out," Ruby asked.

Jaune didn't have pure charisma, if his CHA stat was anything to go off of.

"Yeah, it's nothing, don't worry. I was just thinking about some stuff, nothing important.

He definitely couldn't tell Ruby where his mind had unwittingly led him. This conversation was already awkward enough.

"Oh, okay. How are you?" Ruby asked, patting the seat next to her.

Jaune placed himself into the seat with slightly more force than he'd intended, but he wasn't too worried. "I'm good. I've just been doing some training, that's all."

"Did you speak with Pyrrha and Weiss about the Torchwick situation?" Ruby asked, a small frown gracing her face.

"We… might've had a conversation or two," Jaune replied. "We're going to wait a bit, probably until after the break, but we still have to gather information on him. We can't just charge in without a plan, and we can't have a plan without knowing anything about our enemy."

Ruby nodded. "Yeah, I understand. Are you and AWBN doing anything over the break?"

"Yeah. We're going back to my home. I've got to speak with my parents, and the rest of the team didn't have any plans, so I invited them," Jaune answered.

"Well, I'll keep an ear out to Vale's news, see if I can hear anything that might help," Ruby said, giving Jaune a smile.

Jaune returned it, before standing. "I'm just gonna grab some food, I'll be right back."

" _Would Mr Arc please report to the Headmaster's office? I repeat, Mr Arc to the Headmaster's office."_

Jaune frowned as he reached the midpoint of the cafeteria, the announcement blaring over the intercom.

"Have fun, Jaune!" Ruby said with a wave and a cheeky grin.

"Damnit, Ruby." Jaune said under his breath, no real maliciousness in his voice. He gave the crimson cloaked girl a wave, and quickly set about heading to Ozpin's office, reaching into his inventory and withdrawing what little food he had there, munching away on a bag of _Tater Chips_.

* * *

Exiting the elevator, Jaune nodded a greeting to Professor Goodwitch, who nodded in return.

Jaune stepped through the door into the Headmaster's office, and watched as the door closed itself behind him.

"Professor Ozpin. Is something wrong?" Jaune asked of the man who sat in front of him, mug conspicuously absent.

"Not quite, Mr Arc. I was just checking some footage over the past day or so… You decided to speak to your team about your semblance?"

The man gestured for Jaune to take a chair even as he spoke, and so Jaune did so, sitting down in the comfortable leather seat.

"Yes sir. I figured that we'd already made ourselves some pretty big targets, so it didn't really matter whether or not they knew. Besides, I trust my team implicitly."

Ozpin gave a slight nod at Jaune's explanation. "Well, I must say I'm glad you trust your team that much. However, I'm certain I don't have to explain what could go wrong. You don't strike me as the kind of person to make a decision based on pure spontaneity."

"Thank you, sir," Jaune said, unable to think of anything else to say.

"I must advise you to be careful, though. Your team is certainly comprised of some of this year's strongest first years, but that does not mean you are untouchable. Do not get cocky, Mr Arc. Your team is counting on you."

Jaune just nodded, words not coming to his mind.

"However, I did not ask you here today to simply discuss this with you. I wish to speak to you about Roman Torchwick."

Jaune sat up slightly more, back straight.

"Roman is not a fool. He is no moron, nor is he an idiot. If you used your semblance on him, we may be in a situation."

Jaune shook his head. "No, sir. I only used one spell in our fight. It looks identical to just forcefully blasting Aura out of my hand."

"An advanced Aura technique in everything but actuality. I'm glad to see you had the foresight not to advertise your capabilities, Mr Arc. However, according to the testimony of a Mr Wukong, that was not the only thing you did."

Jaune racked his brain, playing the memory of the night back in his mind.

"I… I used _Mana Bolt_ , right when he became glass. That girl's semblance, she helped him get away. I don't know if he saw it or not," Jaune said, after a time.

"Hmm. I suppose we don't have any other way of confirming or denying whether or not Roman is aware that you have more than one ability, though there is a chance he may believe it to be another advanced Aura technique."

The man stood from his seat, turning to face the massive window that had since been repaired since Jaune's last time in the office.

"I know I cannot stop team's AWBN and RRYN from going after Torchwick. I am no fool, I do know that you plan on going after him regardless of the faculty's opinion. I must ask, however, that you be as responsible as you can in your pursuit. You and Ms Rose are uniquely skilled at leading teams, and your teams are comprised of the most powerful first years. Take care of each other, yourselves, and uphold the Beacon reputation, Mr Arc. Dismissed."

Jaune stood from his chair, a small nod being the only farewell he could muster, not that the headmaster noticed, and walked out, stepping into the elevator with a flurry of confused emotions flitting around his mind, with no signs of stopping.

Why was his life so confusing?

* * *

"You didn't even get good seats, Jaune!"

Jaune had spent many a day travelling with his sisters, and at least one of them had some kind of complaint. 'You're taking up to much space, Jaune!', 'You're in the way, Jaune!', 'Why didn't you get me a treat, Jaune?!'.

So when Weiss began complaining, Jaune did exactly what he did with his sisters.

He tuned her out with such practised ease that it seemed as if the boy had become a statue, not reacting to any and all external stimuli.

Pyrrha and Blake were sat opposite Weiss and Jaune, having decided that no one wanted to sit next to Weiss and listen to her complain for gods-knew-how-long the flight was going to be.

Blake was halfway through a book already, and Pyrrha was simply content to stare out the window at the Valean countryside, something the girl had been yet to experience in her lifetime.

"Are you even listening to me?" Weiss exclaimed.

Jaune didn't respond, simply pulling his scroll out of his pocket and browsing through some articles concerning ideas he might be able to apply to his semblance.

Weiss huffed and promptly gave up, settling into her chair and pulling out a textbook, eyes studiously scanning page after page.

The distance between Domremy and Vale proper wasn't that far, and this wasn't the first time Jaune had ridden aboard the airship along this flightpath, but life had a way of making a second trip seem much shorter than the first, though Jaune didn't know how.

The jolting of the touchdown shook Jaune from his scroll, and he stood with practised ease, giving his stiff muscles a stretch as he took in a deep breath, the cleaner, cooler country air like a luxury for his lungs.

Pyrrha stood and joined him in taking a deep breath, whilst Blake and Weiss set about putting away their books.

Jaune led them through the airship and down the exit ramp, into Domremy's airfield.

One foot after another, the team made their way across the dirt patch that served as the entirety of the airfield, heading for the tiny building that would serve as the luggage area, the name of which was currently escaping Jaune's mind. He didn't fly all that often, so it was fair to say he wasn't all that familiar with airports, airfields, and all the various terms that accompanied them.

Once his team had retrieved their luggage, and once Blake and Weiss had dumped it on him to somehow carry, they made their way towards the town, once again stepping one foot in front of the other in what was three people walking normally and Jaune somewhat crab-walking as he tried to balance Blake's single suitcase, and Weiss's thirty thousand suitcases.

Pyrrha had been smart, she'd brought the bare essentials, a single carry case full of what she needed. Blake had been much the same, though hers also featured many books.

Weiss had decided that her entire wardrobe was too small in variety, and brought a third of what she owned. Well, owned and stored at Beacon.

Despite the fact she seemed to only wear two outfits, and one of which was her Beacon uniform.

Jaune very wisely decided against bringing that up to her, as he knew he liked his head where it sat, and not a hundred feet away, rolling ever so slightly.

"So, Jaune, where are we going? Shouldn't you be in the lead?" Pyrrha asked, looking to her struggling team leader.

"Is there anyone around us?" Jaune asked, voice muffled by luggage.

"No," Blake responded, and Jaune gave a sigh of relief, cramming all the luggage into his inventory, as fast as he could.

Now that Jaune was without burden, he sprung into action, taking point as he lead the rest of AWBN down into the town.

"Morning, Wreaker!" Jaune called as he stepped past, the man who Jaune had greeted giving Jaune a cheerful wave from his perch up on the balcony of the townhouse.

"Who was that, Jaune?" Weiss asked, sparing the man a glance.

"That's Wreaker, the mayor. Great guy, always does stuff for the town. Ever since we were kids he would organise big events for all of the town, like fairs and picnics, and that sort of thing. He knows how to keep the town happy."

Weiss and Pyrrha nodded in appreciation, though Jaune noted Blake giving him a second glance.

"He also has no problems with Faunus, and has exiled a number of racists from the town. So you should feel comfortable here, Blake. Towns out on the border are far too concerned with Grimm and bandits to care about Faunus citizens."

Blake didn't respond, but she stopped flicking her eyes about the citizens. They too were gazing at her, but that was more out of pure curiosity than anything else. She was still wearing her bow, too, so it wasn't as if anyone could tell.

Though, now that Jaune thought about it, it really wasn't a very good disguise. He was honestly impressed that he was so dense that he didn't even suspect it. He could see it twitching for gods sake!

"Jaune Arc, you seem awfully chipper for someone who's about to be the star attraction for an upcoming execution!"

Jaune paled faster than a thing that paled fast. Sue him, he wasn't in the mood for accurate metaphors.

"Uh, hey Daisy," Jaune greeted.

Blake, Weiss and Pyrrha stared in surprise as what could only be described as the female version of their leader berated their actual leader, stepping close to him, fuming.

"'Hey Daisy'? That's what you're going to say, after all these months? You disappeared, you asshole!" Daisy shrieked.

"Woah, alright Daisy, I get it, I get it! I do! Can we shout at me when we're home, please?" Jaune raised his hands in surrender, looking around in a mild panic.

"Hmmph. Fine. But first, who are they?" Daisy asked, jerking her thumb at the other three teens that stood there, somewhat awkwardly.

"These are my friends. Blake Belladonna, Weiss Schnee, and Pyrrha Nikos," Jaune said. "Guys, this is Daisy, my twin sister."

"Sorry about all the shouting. He deserves it, but you don't. It's a pleasure to meet all of you!" Daisy said, her mood flipping like a lightswitch.

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well, Daisy," Weiss greeted, formal training rearing its head.

"I'm pleased to meet you also, Daisy," Pyrrha said less than a second after Weiss introduced herself, the two well-known girls proving that they were experienced in the realm of greeting people.

Blake was… less so, but still so much better than Jaune ever was. "Nice to meet you."

Daisy's beaming smile was infectious, and Jaune found himself smiling at the sight of his sister, despite how angry he knew she was with him.

"Well, Daisy, let's get this shouting match on the road, huh? Lead the way," Jaune said, and Daisy turned a frown at him.

"You might've filled out a heap, Jaune, but you're still younger than me. Don't you think for a second you can boss me around!" Daisy exclaimed.

"Younger by three minutes, Daisy!" Jaune replied with some heat. "You can't lord that over me my entire life!"

"Of course I can, Jaune! I'm older!" Daisy said, with the indisputable logic of the older sibling. Something Jaune was intimately familiar with.

"Fine, whatever. Can we just head home, Daisy?" Jaune forced out, inhaling and exhaling deeply in order to maintain at least some kind of level-headedness.

"Yeah, alright. Come on Blake, Weiss, Pyrrha! The family can't wait to meet you!"

Daisy took off at a brisk pace, something that the three girls of AWBN were quite able to keep up with, but Jaune felt himself fall behind.

"Oh, this is going to be fun," He said to himself, immensely worried.

If Daisy's reaction was anything to go off of, Jaune was in serious, serious trouble.

* * *

The Arc household was big. It wasn't big compared to what Pyrrha, Weiss or Blake were used to, but for Jaune, it was the biggest house he'd ever seen. It dwarfed even some of the houses in Vale, but that was more because there wasn't all that much open land in Vale.

So, it didn't dwarf much on a technical level, except for the majority of the buildings in Domremy.

It had to be that big, though, considering it housed ten people on a good day, and more than that if any friends, family or other people were staying over.

It meant that there were plenty of bedrooms, a kitchen that wouldn't be amiss in a professional restaurant, and a very, very large dining room.

One that Jaune had fond memories of, though those memories were doing nothing to calm him down even slightly.

Each seat was taken, and Jaune's family had discreetly ushered his team to the guest rooms, and summarily, and politely, told to get set up as they needed.

And they escorted Jaune down to the dining room, took their seats, and began formulating what they wanted to say.

Not once had they spoken about anything he'd done. They'd greeted him, hugged him, the only person who'd been vocal about their opinion had been Daisy.

That scared Jaune more than any Grimm ever had. For multiple reasons.

Jaune's mother began the conversation, or discussion, or roasting ceremony, whatever it was called.

"Jaune, honey, I know we said we'd support you in anything you chose to do, but this wasn't what we meant. I think you need to explain yourself, before any more of us jump to the same conclusions," Juniper said, almost pleadingly.

This caught Jaune off-guard. He'd expected to have his family tear into him one after another without letting him speak, until they felt as if they were done.

The rest of his family was silent, so it was a little disconcerting.

Jaune went to open his mouth, but it was apparent that the silence wasn't just the rest of his family, as Jaune couldn't think of a single thing. He didn't know where to start, he couldn't tell his family about the System. His team was a bit different, of course, he'd be around them for the rest of his tenure at Beacon, and maybe even beyond. His family, though?

"Jaune, son, you faked your way into Beacon. I'd be impressed if I wasn't so disappointed," Jaune's father, Chrys, said aloud, a frown gracing his face.

"I didn't lie my way in!" Jaune exclaimed, finding his voice.

"Then how did you get in, Jaune? We all know you had next to no talent with any of the weapons you tried, you didn't have your Aura unlocked, and you don't have a semblance, Jaune! What else are we supposed to think?" Chrys shouted, standing upright.

Juniper's hand was quickly placed against her husband's arm, but Jaune was on his feet, anger written into his face.

"Not for lack of trying, Dad! I trained with Crocea Mors for months, and nothing! I could barely swing the damn thing, and I didn't even know what Aura was, because you wouldn't tell me! The sole Arc male, to precious to risk! Is our bloodline so important that you'd throw my dream away without even giving me a chance?!"

Chrys at least respected Jaune enough to sit back down. "That… that wasn't what I…"

Jaune sat himself back down, unhooking Crocea Mors and the sheath from his belt and placing it on the table.

"I've killed Grimm with this thing, Dad. I'm good at it, ask my team. I have Aura, I have a semblance, and I won't stop being a Hunter. You can't stop me. My team needs its leader, and I need my team," Jaune said, staring at the sheathed blade.

"You didn't tell us, Jaune."

Jaune looked up, at Daisy. Her face betrayed no emotion, but Jaune knew his twin sister.

"I'm sorry I lied. I'm sorry I left, and I'm sorry I didn't call. But if I went back, and was given the same choice? I'd do it again, in a heartbeat. Being a Huntsman is what I've always wanted to do, what I'm meant to do. I didn't want to hurt you, any of you, but I had a chance to follow my dream, and I took it with both hands, and hung on for dear life."

Jaune looked back down, staring at the blade. "I'm so, so sorry. Please don't hate me for the decision I've made."

The table was once again filled with silence, and Jaune closed his eyes, unable to look at any of his family, no doubt staring at him with contempt, hating his very-

His eyes snapped open in surprise as he felt something he hadn't felt in a very, very long time.

Nine sets of arms wrapped around him in a clusterous group hug, squeezing him tight enough to vent the very air from his lungs.

"Jaune, you foolish boy. We could never hate you," Juniper said, voice muffled.

"Idiot, of course we love you," Daisy said.

His other sisters all repeated very similar messages, hugging him tightly, and even Chrys spoke a muffled "Damn Hunter genes."

Jaune felt air return to his lungs as they released him, returning to their seats.

"Jaune, I… no, that can wait. Go see if your team is settled in, and we'll get the stuff for a cookout set up," Jaune's father said, and Jaune nodded, standing and clipping Crocea Mors to his belt once more, heading for the guest rooms.

"He reminds me of you when you were younger, Chrys," Juniper said with a smile, and Chrys shook his head.

"I know, Juni. That's what I'm worried about."

* * *

"How'd it go, Jaune?"

Jaune gave Pyrrha a shaky smile. "It went… about as well as I could've hoped, I guess. You getting settled in fine?"

"Weiss insisted on having a room to herself, and Blake was surprised by the fact that we'd all have separate rooms. I'm all set up, myself, though it does feel a bit odd without the rest of you inside," Pyrrha said, giving a small laugh. "I've almost gotten used to being crammed into a room with all of you."

Jaune laughed at that. "I know what you mean. I spent my childhood crammed into a room with Daisy, and when we reached our teens we got our own rooms. All we did was complain that we were stuck with each other, and in a day we were missing each other's company. It took some getting used to, that's for sure."

"Well, I'm glad you seem to have worked things out with your family, at least as much as you could. Did you tell them about your semblance?" Pyrrha asked.

"No, I won't be. We're going to have a more indepth chat tonight, over dinner, but I'd appreciate if you didn't mention any details about my semblance. I'll mention the same to Blake and Weiss, too," Jaune replied, as the two headed down the hall.

His knuckles rapped on the next guest room door, and Blake opened it quietly. "Did it go well?"

Jaune nodded, and Blake was glad that he did, instead of having a full conversation. She preferred it this way, anyway.

The three moved on to what was temporarily Weiss's room, and Jaune, much like the previous times, knocked on the door.

Weiss opened it with a huff. "Are your issues solved?"

Jaune raised an eyebrow. "I remember us being far more concerned about you and Blake than you seem to be about my own problems."

"Are they or aren't they?" Weiss asked again, crossing her arms.

"Yes?"

"Good. Now, can we have our luggage?" Weiss held out her hand.

Jaune scratched the back of his head, as he was prone to do.

"Eh-heh. Sorry?"

* * *

 **We'll be seeing more of Jaune's family in the next chapter, so don't worry. Hope you enjoyed this one.**

 **Now, I have a few things to say.**

 **Firstly, one thousand followers. That's... I don't really know what to say. Thank you all so, so much for being here to read my stuff, and to provide feedback. I started writing over a year ago, and that time has just flown by so fast.**

 **Secondly, I've now started a Pa Treon, despite the fact that fanfiction seems to block the word. If you want to support me more, you can, from anything as small as a dollar to more, if you felt so inclined. The first pledge tier costs a dollar, and will have your name placed at the top of future chapters that month. There are a few more tiers, too, so check it out if you are interested.**

 **There will be nothing limited by not being a patron, no early chapters or anything like that. All of you will still get to see everything I write when I post it, no matter whether or not you decide to support me. Pa Treon is purely a way to help me out, so I can keep writing.**

 **Now, onto this week's reviews!**

 **adislt: Now that sounds interesting. Heroic spirits would require Heroic Catalysts, though, so I'll have to see about implementing some kind of catalyst system that is a little more in-depth than what I have currently.**

 **merendinoemiliano: Are you saying Fire and Lightning aren't connected in some way? Because last I checked, fire is pretty common with electricity. Especially if you're me and you accidentally light your toaster on fire. That was a fun weekend.**

 **FORD B: Lewding the Neo is the only reason I watch RWBY. Well, it isn't, but that won't stop me from hoping.**

 **commandosquirrel: Wait and see!**

 **Echonic: Aw, that's a shame. It was nice to have you while it did last, though!**

 **CorEagle: You're right, but I was more playing it for a final joke rather than an actual, full, emotional conversation. Also I'm partially basing it on my own interactions with my family, so I don't know what it's like for you, but you are right, and that could've used some work.**

 **Guest: The help system is intended for use when Jaune realises he can use it. It also gives very vague hints most of the time, except for the only time its been shown, because I didn't realise how OP it was on first implementation. This is the problem with designing a game through a story. You can't beta-test a story.**

 **Pyropuppet: Worry not, Alcmena will not be dying any time soon. When a summon gets too damaged, they de-summon. Also, I meant no offense to The Name Of The Game, bear in mind that was one of the main inspirations for choosing to write a Gamer fic myself. It can be a bit abrasive with opinions, but that's all fine when you consider the vastness of text that it encompasses. I was joking, so don't fret. And that sigil sight skill you suggested sounds a lot like Scrying, which, after you reminded me, has now been added to the spreadsheet. Which has gotten way too big and I love it.**

 **Guest: Could Jaune resurrect Summer? Now isn't that an interesting question. Probably not, though, at least, not in Systema. Summons aren't resurrections, they're conjurations, technically.**

 **Master DK: You read my mind. Go check out Soulfulbard's Game On, if you haven't already. It's pretty damn great.**

 **iron-slayer-dragon: Aw, shucks. You're gonna make me blush.**

 **PrototypeSaber15: Yeah, most probably, though it won't be a direct rip. I've already had some from other things, though now that Volume 6 has Manticores I suppose it isn't canon-breaking anymore.**

 **Slenderbrine: Yeah, that was better. Granted, I think of the chapter title immediately before I post the chapter, and they're usually about the same amount of quality as my icon.**

 **DepressedNinja75: Well, to each their own, I suppose. You don't have to read if you don't like it, though.**

 **TalonIbnLaAhad: You just wait, it'll be explosive. Also I still need to figure out the partnering for that part of canon, but it should be a fun write, and an even more fun read.**

 **Arsinis: That's what every other fic does, isn't it? A shame it's so lame, though. But hey, maybe if you read past chapter three you might see something different!**

 **Scribble novice: Thanks! I'm glad to see you like the pacing and balancing, that's something I'm always a little worried about. Though, considering we're sixteen chapters in and just reaching Volume 2 canon-wise, I'm still a little uncertain on that front.**

 **And that about does it for reviews this week! I look forward to seeing you again!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	17. Probably A Giant Snake, I Don't Know

**This chapter was a little rushed, and uploaded a little early because I _really_ need to get some sleep, but enjoy nonetheless, and I hope you all had/are having/will have a good Halloween, if you celebrate it.**

* * *

The evening was as peaceful as family cookout with thirteen people could reasonably be.

Amidst the chattering of Jaune's team and Jaune's family, the blond teen sat, hands warming by the bonfire, his father next to him.

Mutual silence befitted them both, neither particularly skilled at conversing their emotions with the other. A rather typical father-son relationship, if Jaune were to be frank. Well, it was the only one he really had experience with, at least, so to him it was normal.

Their silence continued on for a little while, both content to listen to the rest speak, varying tones of excitement and interest filling the air. Daisy was conversing with Pyrrha, asking her about her Sanctum days, and a few more of Jaune's sisters were listening intently as Weiss spoke of what it was like in Atlas. Blake and Olive, one of Jaune's older sisters, were speaking quietly about something, hushed tones making it clear that Jaune didn't _want_ to know what it was they were discussing.

Of course, that couldn't last forever, as Juniper leant over and nudged Chrys with an elbow, jolting the man into action.

"Jaune, can… can we speak for a moment?" He asked, and Jaune looked to his father in mild surprise, and less-than-mild nervousness.

"Yeah, Dad?" Jaune answered, as his father led him a little away from the bonfire and back towards the house.

"I need to speak to you, about what you said earlier. And what I said," Chrys began, staring up at the stars in the sky, chunks of moon drifting into view beyond the treeline.

"I want you to know that I didn't explain what Aura was to you not to protect the bloodline, but to protect you, Jaune."

Jaune stared at his father, as the man folded his arms.

"I need you to understand something, something I should've made much more clear. I am so, so proud of your dream to become a hero," Chrys said, before turning to face his son.

"However, the reason I didn't want you to become a Huntsman is because a Huntsman is not a hero. _I'm_ not a hero, no matter the stories we've told you over the years. Neither is your mother, or any of your sisters. We're Huntsman and Huntresses, Hunters, Jaune. The most important thing I can ever make you understand is what a Hunter does."

The moonlight proved it had excellent dramatic timing as it shone over Chrys's face. "Hunters hunt, Jaune. They hunt Grimm, and they hunt people."

The man fell silent, as Jaune digested what his father had said.

It took a moment before Jaune was capable of formulating a response. "I know, Dad. I get it, but that doesn't mean this isn't the best path for me to take to become a hero."

The happy chattering served as an interesting contrast to their conversation, as Chrys spoke up once more. "Jaune. Hunters aren't police. We don't arrest criminals, or terrorists. We hunt them. What happens to something once it's been hunted?"

Jaune was quick to answer, though he knew it wasn't something either party liked. "It's killed."

"Exactly, Jaune. I didn't want you to be a Huntsman because I didn't want to see such a sweet, heroic boy turn into a grizzled Huntsman like myself, or many of the men and women I know. It isn't a heroic job, son."

Jaune shook his head. "Sometimes that's what it takes, though. They endanger innocents, and Hunters have a code. Capture or kill, Dad. Not just kill."

Chrys shook his head sadly. "And when you're pinned against a door with twelve children behind it and a crew of slavers in front of you, the hard choice suddenly becomes the only choice. I didn't want you to have to make that choice."

Jaune watched as his father turned away, old memories running rampant.

"Jaune… I'm so damn proud of you, though. I can't say it enough. You lead a team of capable Huntresses, and you made your way into Beacon through their entrance exam," Chrys said, as he watched the others by the fire. "Though I'm not sure how you managed it."

Jaune gave a nervous chuckle. "It's a long, long story, something Headmaster Ozpin told me not to speak about. Sorry, Dad."

Chrys snorted. "Ozpin and his damned secrecy. That man… No, nevermind. It isn't important."

Jaune reached up to scratch the back of his head, but his arm was blocked as Chrys wrapped his arm around Jaune's shoulders, pulling him into a side hug.

"Either way, Jaune, I'm glad you've been able to find some friends. Take care of them, you hear me?"

Jaune nodded as the two stood adjacent, watching the flickering fire.

After a time, the two rejoined the group, and actively participated in the various conversations, Chrys asking about how it was with Jaune as the leader, and Jaune begging his team not to make him sound like a terrible leader.

And Jaune found himself completely at peace, something he hadn't felt in a while.

It was a feeling he'd found himself missing.

* * *

Jaune and his team were the most relaxed they'd been in some time. With the pressure of school, Blake's extra-curricular activity, and Jaune trying to figure out the System, it wasn't surprising that a break from all that was not only appreciated, but deserved.

The Arc family had been nothing but gracious hosts, and whilst Jaune had expected that, it was a pleasant time for Pyrrha, Blake and Weiss, the latter of which was remarkably surprised with the quality of stay she was experiencing.

And, to be honest, Weiss was actually appreciating the homely style the entire house had. It was nothing like the Schnee Manor, nor any of the hotels she'd stayed at whenever she'd ventured out from the manor. The country air was clean, the atmosphere was peaceful and friendly, and it was, all in all, a relaxing experience.

Nearly two weeks had passed without any of the Beacon students doing much of anything aside from relaxing, reading, and, much to the dismay of Weiss, playing video games in an attempt to understand Jaune's semblance.

It had taken Weiss nearly a day of practise to grasp the concept of 'looking', or in this case, manipulating the camera in an attempt to maintain coherent sight on objectives, without accidentally staring at the sky and being unable to look down due to a failure in hand-eye-coordination and memory.

Blake had mastered the basics rather quickly, and Pyrrha's competitive nature had shown as she followed Blake's lead, and despite Weiss's similarly competitive nature, she'd taken the longest to establish a firm grasp on the concept.

Now, though, mastering the strategy of wide-area tactics and squad management, this was where Weiss was beginning to excel. Of course, Blake and Pyrrha were much better at the 'Quick Time Events', whatever those were, but still. She wasn't about to let the 'metagame', as Jaune called it, escape her focus.

The four were sat on the various couches, rotating through turns on the console as Jaune walked them through standard video game concepts, whilst also concentrating on some of the elements of said games.

Currently, it was a multiplayer match of the videogame version of Remnant: The Game, whose original name was the butt of many jokes in most forums.

This was their second match, and their first proper competitive match. The first match had been Jaune explaining the rules and certain card effects, so that the rest of AWBN could grasp the concepts the game laid out.

Weiss was, expectedly, Atlas, with Pyrrha as Mistral, Blake as Vacuo, and finally Jaune as Vale, which fit them all almost perfectly, aside from Blake, who was disappointed Menagerie didn't have any representation in the game.

Jaune had been quick to assuage Blake of her concern, saying there was, he was just too cheap to buy the DLC.

After then explaining what DLC was, the match had begun, the four building up their respective armies.

Each of their scrolls, linked up to the console, displayed their cards, and soon, the first round of turns had ended.

"I'm sorry, Jaune, but I'm declaring war on Vale," Pyrrha said, much to the surprise of everyone else.

"What? But Pyrrha, why?!" Jaune exclaimed, as the board on the screen manipulated Pyrrha's Mistralian ground forces onto the eastern coast of the continent of Sanus.

"It's either you or Weiss, and I don't particularly fancy going up against an airfleet, Jaune, I'm sorry," Pyrrha explained apologetically.

"Aw, damn. Well, My land defenses aren't close enough, so I guess I'll just have to… play Giant Nevermore!" With a cry, Jaune tapped his scroll, the screech of a digital Nevermore playing over the speakers as an animated icon appeared on the screen.

The two digital dice rolled, and Jaune crossed his fingers.

A five, and a three.

"Yes!" Jaune cheered, and the four watched as a torrential downpour of Nevermore feathers littered the digital battlefield, destroying half of Pyrrha's ground forces, the rest scrambling for cover.

"Now my ground forces are underway, and you've lost half your forces!" Jaune cheered again, and Pyrrha frowned.

"You got lucky, Arc," Weiss said, shaking her head. "Entrusting your future to luck, that sounds just like something you'd do."

Jaune laughed. "Technically, Luck is one of my stats."

Pyrrha glared at Jaune.

"Wait, it's the stat I'm most average in! I'm not cheating! I didn't even know I _could_ cheat!" Jaune rushed to explain, hands up in an attempt to placate the redheaded teen.

The game continued for a few turns, as Blake stayed mostly to herself, Vacuo slowly but surely building a competent army, as Weiss and Pyrrha skirmished, Pyrrha having pulled her forces back to Mistral.

Jaune was mostly content to up his military forces much like Blake, playing a defensive game and waiting until someone else made a move on him, preparing a trap.

A trap he'd never get to spring.

"Jaune! Dad needs you!" Daisy called out, poking her head into the room.

Jaune gave his twin a nod, tossing her his scroll. "Take over for me, Daisy, and don't lose!"

The two switched positions with practised ease, and it was apparent that Daisy shared Jaune's tactical mind as she immediately realised what he was planning.

Jaune was already out the door, though, and wouldn't get to see his plan executed.

"You needed me, Dad?" Jaune asked, as the teen stepped into the yard, the afternoon sun shining from behind the sparse cloud cover.

Chrys Arc stood there, decked out in his armor, massive sword in his hands, blade pointed at the ground.

"Training, my boy. We've never gone toe to toe, and I look forward to seeing what you can do."

Jaune paled. "Uh, Dad, I don't think I'm that good…"

"Nonsense. You got into Beacon legitimately, so you should be able to at least keep up with me."

Jaune liked to think he wasn't worried. He liked to think the idea of sparring with his fully-fledged Hunter father wasn't a terrifying prospect.

Jaune also liked to lie to himself a lot.

"Get your gear, Jaune, I'll wait."

Jaune, tremoring, went back into the house, donning his armor and grabbing Crocea Mors, before returning to the yard, still shaking somewhat.

"Come on, Jaune, you've killed Ursa three times your size, you can spar with Dad. This shouldn't be that bad. You're just exaggerating," The boy said to himself, whispering under his breath.

The man was still standing in the same position, sword planted into the ground, muscular arms leaning against the handle.

It was a stark comparison between the two. Chrys stood with gleaming armor that covered his entire torso and shoulders, greaves shining, and gauntlets wrapped around his arms.

Jaune stood with his cheaper, steel plate armor that barely covered anything, an attempt made at protecting his internal organs, thought the attempt was done more for a design standpoint than an actual defensive standpoint.

And that wasn't even to mention the sheer disparity between weapons. Crocea Mors was a one-handed sword, alongside a shield.

Chrys's weapon was an immense two-handed broadsword, the end forking inwards in an inverse point.

It was as intimidating as the man would be to face in battle, and Jaune was very much not looking forward to this. At least Ozpin hadn't decked himself out in armor.

"Are you ready, Jaune?" Chrys asked, drawing his blade from the dirt and hefting it over his shoulder. "We'll start when you are."

Jaune was struck by a sudden bout of genius. With a single breath, he drew Crocea Mors, deployed his sheath into a shield, and, with a shout of "Ready!", sprinted in towards his father.

The man wasn't as caught off guard as Jaune was hoping, swinging his broadsword down with a single hand, making Jaune have to back off his assault, lest he get crushed beneath the weight of the weapon.

The man wound back for a second swing, and his other hand grasped the handle beneath his first, and the swing had more power and more speed behind it, the air whistling as the blade carved through it.

Jaune lifted his shield, the blade hitting it on an angle, Chrys's blade being deflected, and Jaune felt his muscles tense, the impact driving him back a couple feet.

Another strike followed the first, blade carving through the space between the two, intense mass bearing down as Jaune used the angle to block the attack, once again deflecting the blade to the side with a grunt of pain, exerting himself.

The Arc patriarch, or PatriArc, if you would, was barely fazed by the deflected attack, his immense physical prowess meaning that he was able to regain control of the sword, angling it for, yet again, another attack.

Jaune braced for the impact, still trying to figure out exactly what he was supposed to do, when he realised that the attack was yet to come.

He peered at his father from behind his shield, only to see the man staring off into the distance, towards the forest that surrounded the town.

Jaune, assuming the spar was over, sheathed Crocea Mors, leaving the shield deployed on his arm as he did so.

Something was clearly wrong.

"Jaune, get your team, and fetch your mother. Something's wrong," Chrys ordered, and Jaune blanked for a moment.

"What's wrong?" He asked, and his father took a moment before responding.

"Listen."

Jaune did so, listening intently. He heard nothing. "I don't hear anything, Dad."

The man nodded. "Exactly. What happened to the birds, the animals. Silence like this isn't natural. Something's coming."

Jaune frowned, before extending his arm. _Bound Soul_ triggered, and a chirp from Alcmena indicated that the bird had been summoned, as if the extra weight on Jaune's arm hadn't been enough.

Chrys stared at the not-quite-a-Grimm that sat on Jaune's arm, slack-jawed, but Jaune didn't have the time nor the will to explain what was happening, and instead mentally ordered Alcmena to take off, the bird doing as he willed it to.

"Alcmena will get us a view up above. I'll get the others," Jaune said, breaking into a jog as he approached the house.

Blake was already sticking her head out the door, a concerned look on her face.

"Did you hear?" Jaune asked, and the faunus girl nodded. "Get the rest of AWBN, then, we'll meet up in the yard. Grab your gear."

Blake did as her leader bid, ducking back inside the house and heading towards where Pyrrha and Weiss were, as Jaune took a different turn, headed for where his mother's last known location, the reading room.

He didn't really care about manners as he practically bust down the door, his mother letting out a mild yelp as he did so.

"Jaune! What's wrong?" She asked, concerned.

"Dad thinks it's Grimm." The only explanation that Jaune gave was the only explanation Juniper needed, climbing to her feet from her comfortable seat and quickly passing by Jaune.

"Violet! Indigo! Lapis! Olive! Situation, grab your weapons!" Juniper shouted. "Daisy, get Marigold and Azalea, get them into the safe room!"

The house was suddenly abuzz with noise as everyone began rushing around, and Jaune was quick to get back out to the yard, linking his senses to Alcmena's with _Bound Senses_.

Chrys watched as Jaune's eyes glowed a bright blue. It was at this point that Jaune paled.

"Dad, how many Grimm do you think there are?" The boy asked.

His father replied quickly. "At least a hundred. Why?"

"Uh… A quick cursory count, rough estimate sort of thing… I'm seeing at least double that."

Chrys's face joined Jaune's in paling. "Oh. That could be bad. I don't know if we can hold off that many Grimm. Not without a choke point."

"Can we lead them away?" Jaune asked, practically spitballing ideas at this point.

"Not without significant emotional provocation, or a massive amount of Aura users flaring at the same time," Chrys answered, as Juniper and the older four Arc sisters stepped into the yard alongside the rest of AWBN, all decked out in their various armaments.

"There are eight of us. Is that enough?" Jaune asked.

"Not even close. This amount of Grimm, from this distance, drawing them away from a target like this, we'd need at least twenty. Most probably more, though, depending on the quality and quantity of Aura," Chrys replied.

Jaune, eyes still glowing, gave the swarm of Grimm one more cursory glance from Alcmena's point of view, before cutting the link. "We've got about three minutes to figure out a plan, Dad."

"Jaune, how do you…" Juniper began, but Jaune shook his head.

"Now's probably not the time, Mum. Later?"

His mother agreed, stepping up next to her husband. "Daisy, Mari and Azalea are in the safe room. How many?"

"Jaune says at least two hundred, but my gut says more. A mixed variety, Jaune?" Chrys turned to face his son.

"Mostly Beowolves and Ursa, though I did spot a couple bigger things. Taijitu, probably. Didn't see any Nevermores or Deathstalkers, but don't quote me on that," Jaune replied with far more levity than he actually felt.

"I suppose we only have one option. Olive, go to the town, take care of the evacuation. Lapis, go with her, the two of you can handle it. Violet, Indigo, take the far side. Jaune, take your team and hold the close side. Your mother and I will take the center. Stay in touch, use your scrolls, and stay safe. Don't risk yourselves for some buildings." Chrys's authoritative tone brooked no argument from any of the surrounding people, and they quickly rushed into action.

* * *

It took nearly a minute of running for Jaune and his team to reach their designated point, but they were glad to have at least some time to prepare.

"I'm going to set up a perimeter of sigils. You guys set up whatever you can. We're holding this line, no matter what," Jaune said, quickly setting forth.

Time was significantly limited, but Jaune was fast to prepare, a series of _Mana Grenade_ imbued _Spell Sigils_ being placed with relative spacing. It wasn't neat, it wasn't a flawless structure designed to maximise blast potential, but it was enough that Jaune was confident it would kill at least some Grimm. And, honestly, that was all that really mattered to Jaune.

Five sigils were sketched into the dirt before Jaune had to pull back to their defensive line they'd promptly set up, as the first quote-unquote wave of Beowolves breached the treeline.

Gunfire from Pyrrha and Blake lit up the target rich environment as the lupine Grimm threw themselves at the new threats that they'd discovered, and Jaune quickly ordered Alcmena to fly an orbit over his parents and his oldest sisters, as a precaution.

He drew his sword as he did so, stepping in front of Blake as Weiss stood behind Pyrrha. The redhead and the leader were to serve as the frontline, and Blake and Weiss would serve as the reserve force, in a sense.

It was a formation they'd developed pretty early into their team training, under the watchful and intimidating guise of Professor Goodwitch. Formations had been drilled into their heads from the beginning of the semester, and Jaune found himself thankful the woman had been adamant about it being second nature.

All of his team possessed at least some element of tactical awareness, so it made their communication both silent and incredibly effective, at least for basic concepts such as this.

The Grimm were, as they tended to be, relentless, though, and soon the gunfire was proving to not be enough to hold back the veritable swarm of monsters as they closed in. Pyrrha quickly swapped to her xiphos form, and alongside Jaune the two began swinging and slashing at the wall of dark, shadowy flesh and snapping teeth as they used their shields to block the occasional swipe that wasn't either cut off or otherwise interrupted.

Jaune needed to conserve his Mana, but he wasn't suicidally obsessed with the idea. These Grimm, almost entirely Beowolves, died within one or two strikes, and though there were many, AWBN were managing to hold them off. Of course, Weiss was doing her best with her ice to pin the monsters into a relative chokehold, and Blake was darting in and out with tactically-minded slashes to either deflect strikes or to simply end high-priority targets wherever she saw them, doing her best to maintain an eye on the entire fight, occasionally relaying information to Jaune, who was deep enough into a melee that he wasn't able to see the bigger picture.

Information, crowd control, tanking, and strategy. The four most important elements of a successful team engaged in a fight with a horde. Another thing that, whilst worded differently, Professor Goodwitch had instilled in their minds. Although Professor Port had said things along the same vein, his were usually blended amongst hour-long exaggerated retellings of his supposedly real prior ventures.

"Jaune, they're running out of Beowolves! It's mostly Ursa now!" Blake called out, from slightly behind him, a little to his left.

Jaune frowned. Ursa were tougher and slower, and there were less of them, but their size was going to prove to be the biggest issue.

"Let me know when the majority of the Ursa reach the sigils!" Jaune shouted back over the sound of various screaming, growling and howling the hostile force was emitting.

It was a veritable cacophony of lupinous noise, and Jaune was starting to get sick of the sound.

"Jaune! Now!" Blake shouted, and Jaune mentally triggered the sigils.

The cacophony suddenly seemed muted in comparison to the dull thuds of five _Mana Grenades_ spontaneously detonating, the roars of the not-quite-but-almost-dead Ursa that had been nearby following the shockwave that travelled in the wake of the explosions.

"Yeah!" Jaune cheered as he felt himself re-invigorated, slashing and cutting though the horde that threatened still to press down on him and Pyrrha, the girl, much like himself, sweating like a leaking barrel of water.

The constant assault was exhausting, mentally and physically, so this minor victory was major in Jaune's mind.

To top it all off, in the back of Jaune's mind, the boy could feel Alcmena letting off attack after attack, her bronze tipped feathers raining down atop the Grimm near the rest of his family, as they too fought against the monstrous assault.

And then the rest of the Ursa impacted against Jaune and Pyrrha.

The two nearly buckled under the onslaught of Grimm, as Weiss strained herself to maintain a variety of glyphs, doing her best to keep the monsters from swarming around the side.

The Grimm were drawn to the defenders, like metal to a magnet, but Jaune knew it wasn't enough. There were Grimm slipping through the cracks, and the boy could only hope that Olive and Lapis were aware enough to take care of them.

It wasn't enough to simply slash, block and cut at the Grimm, so Jaune decided to give himself a little space to work with.

A _Shield Bash_ followed by a bare-handed _Mana Blast_ was enough to get some distance, a little bit of breathing room, and he quickly cast _Power_ and _Enduring_ on himself, buffing his STR and END for the next minute.

That was all he had time to buff, however, as the Grimm swarmed back in, the mass of bodies becoming difficult to fight around.

"We need to pull back a little!" Jaune called out, bracing against another Ursa's attack, claws scraping over the metal of his shield.

"We barely have the time to disengage, Jaune!" Pyrrha shouted back, the girl's weapons a blur as she cut, sliced, dodged and blocked anything within her range.

Jaune unleashed a _Mana Slash_ into the writhing mass of Grimm, before blocking yet another attack.

"Jaune, I can't hold these glyphs much longer!" Weiss exclaimed, exhaustion evident in her voice.

Jaune didn't know what to do. If they pulled back, the Grimm would surge forward and gain significant momentum, if they stayed they'd be overwhelmed.

Jaune needed to disorient the Grimm, something they could use to push them back. Something to knock them off their feet.

And then Jaune had an idea.

"Find your center of gravity!" Jaune shouted as loud as he could, before dropping his sword and slamming his hand into the ground, channelling Mana out the end.

Even the Grimm seemed surprised as the ground trembled, shook and quaked, cracks splintering through the dirt and stone as glowing light emerged from the interior, breaking apart the terrain with a violent shaking.

Jaune was quick on the draw, picking up Crocea Mors and attacking, Pyrrha right behind him. Blake was quick to follow suit, and even Weiss was spearing and puncturing Grimm with Myrtenaster, the four forming a wedge formation as they drove through the monsters.

The Grimm that had remained standing were dispatched without incident, and the Grimm that had been knocked off their feet became even easier targets, unable to defend themselves.

Few Grimm remained, the onslaught having been reduced to the toughest of the bunch. Only a couple Beowolf Alphas and a few Ursa Majors.

"Come on, AWBN, we've got this!" Jaune cheered, as the last Grimm pushed their way closer and closer.

The Alpha Beowolves were first up, but they weren't even that big a threat, Jaune and his team cutting through them like a warm knife through warmer butter.

The Ursa Majors, two of them, would prove to be marginally more challenging, and so Jaune decided to use some of the Mana he'd managed to regenerate. He was thankful for that Mana Cognition perk, that was for sure.

A _Spinning Mana Bullet_ punctured the chest of the first Ursa Major, and Pyrrha quickly leapt forward with a spinning slash that decapitated the beast, as Jaune effectively kneecapped the second, driving Crocea Mors point first through the Ursa's leg, the tip of his blade piercing flesh and skin to emerge from the other side.

The Ursa gave an immense roar as it buckled down onto one leg, and Weiss quickly stabbed it through the eye, the point of her rapier piercing with a spray of black arterial goo.

"Clear!" Blake called out, as she surveyed the surroundings.

Jaune withdrew his sword from the Ursa Major's knee, wiping it against the rapidly decaying flesh, and sheathing it, shield retracting to fit comfortably against his side in its usual position.

"Well done, AWBN," Jaune said with a staggered exhalation, exhaustion, fatigue and adrenaline shooting through him in alternating staccato bursts.

"How are the others?" Pyrrha asked, wiping the sweat off her brow.

Jaune didn't answer, taking a deep breath and activating _Bound Senses_ , seeing through Alcmena's eyes as she flew about the sky, eyes on the battlefield.

"Alcmena can't see anything unusual, so I think we're in the clear," Jaune said, deactivating _Bound Senses_.

A loud, indescribable screeching sound dissuaded him of that notion incredibly quickly, sword and shield finding their way into his hands with utmost haste.

Jaune could see the treetops in the distant part of the forest shaking, and whatever was causing it was making its way closer.

Jaune commanded Alcmena to fly back towards him, but at the rate the thing was approaching was fast enough that it probably wouldn't matter.

"Incoming!" Jaune shouted, and it burst through the trees.

The Elder King Taijitu that burst from the foliage with a screech was a surprise, one that Jaune would have been very happy to have lived without, but one he was very much going to have to deal with regardless.

"That thing is massive! Any ideas?" Weiss asked, backing up alongside the rest of her team.

Jaune, one for creating incredibly detailed, in-depth plans with many steps and effective, idiot-proof strategy, quickly and effectively came up with a plan. "Hit it with everything we've got!"

Jaune followed up his incredibly detailed explanation of his complex and effective plan by charging and blasting a _Mana Pulse_ at the immense two-headed snake Grimm, the amorphous ball of Mana impacting against its head with a dull thud and a plume of Mana-coloured smoke.

The beast decided that it didn't like that very much, giving a roar in response.

So, Jaune tried again, this time firing a _Mana Pulse_ infused with lightning.

The sparking orb of lightning infused Mana once again impacted against the Elder King Taijitu's white-sided head with a crackling thud.

It didn't like that much either.

Jaune gulped a deep, dramatic gulp, as the giant snake reared closer towards the four.

"Well, now what?" Weiss exclaimed, as the gigantic snake eked even closer.

Jaune, ever the tactician, announced his new idea. "Hit it even harder?"

The Elder King Taijitu decided it didn't like that idea any more than the previous times.

They were all going to die.

* * *

 **Well, that's a cliffhanger, I guess. Oops?**

 **Also, before I get to reviews, I'd just like to have a chat in regards to Vol 6 spoilers. I won't have any of it. No spoilers, and if you want to speak about Vol 6 limit yourself to only speak about the episode that has publicly aired. Some people can't or won't get First, so it isn't fair to ruin the show for them. In saying that, the first episode is damn good.**

 **Now, for reviews!**

 **adislt: I don't know what kind of houses you're used to, but to me that's a mansion, no other way about it.**

 **Silly Thoughts: It's mostly for the convenience of me not having to explain every element in detail for people to be able to grasp the idea. Skills points will serve a purpose, we just haven't gotten into them all that much just yet. As for OCs, I feel like expanding upon the world with OCs is a good idea, but as you say oversaturation is the enemy of creativity, or at least in not as many words. Also fucking Elemental Bound Souls holy shit yes.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Elemental Weaknesses are proving to be my bane. Seriously, they're fucking with my mind. Some are easy, like fire and water, lightning and earth, light and dark, but what the fuck is the opposite of wind. Ice? Steam? The spreadsheet grows evermore, and I find myself struggling to maintain effective balance. Oh well.**

 **GhostRiderCouldKillSuperman: Oh great. More elements. Christ, what the hell would Plasma Dust even be?! Oh wait, shit. Energy Dust. Actual Canon Energy Dust. Nevermind my ramblings, continue on.**

 **Guest: Yeah, give Jaune a couple chapters. I wonder if there is a skill to make... no, I won't go there.**

 **superblal: The reason is because the regen isn't based on the amount of Aura, but his END stat. It makes sense canon-wise because we know a long rest is needed to recharge Aura, so 0.36/s fits rather well. I'm glad you enjoy the open-world RPG style I was going for, with level-scaling, and you are right in both regards concerning physical skills and using magic without dropping weapons. Jaune does make minor use of this in this chapter, but it does serve as an introduction to a concept I'm planning on incorporating. Glad you enjoyed!**

 **Guest: Considering the order of Arrow or Bullet, I think you** **are right. It makes more sense the way you've put it, but I won't go back and change it, we'll just chalk it up to Jaune's tactical mind still in development.**

 **Well, that about does it for reviews this week, and I need to go to sleep. Shut up, what do you mean it's noon? I'm running on sixteen different timezones, and none of them are the same. Help. Oh, Pa Treon too, if any of you feel so inclined. I'm AFatFlyingWhale on there too, unsurprisingly. I'm glad that all of you are enjoying Systema, and gods are there a lot of you.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	18. If I Had A Pet Snake, I'd Name It Ouro

**Still technically Thursday here, even if for only an hour longer.**

* * *

Vale was as busy as it usually was on a weekday, the crowds bustling about, various people attending to their various jobs. Couriers cycled by, delivering the various packages they were entrusted with, vendors proclaimed their goods with bright advertisements, sign-spinners spun their signs, and pedestrians walked the paths that laid about the scattered cityscape.

One such pair of pedestrians had a destination in mind for a very specific reason, one that was not necessarily their own, but one they had a very good reason to obey.

"Mercury, I will pay you to shut up."

"That isn't your money."

"It can be yours if you stop talking."

Emerald Sustrai and Mercury Black paced down the sidewalk in downtown Vale, bickering with each other.

"I don't think there's enough Lien in the world to get me to stop talking, Em," Mercury replied, smirking all the while.

"One of these days I'm certain I'll figure out a way," Emerald said, frowning at the teen as he opened his mouth to make a comment. "Don't even think about saying that, Merc. I'll gut you here and now, and finish the job myself."

Mercury laughed, exaggeratedly stretching his arm around to reach across Emerald's shoulders. "Aw, you sure about that, Em?"

The sheer look of venom that Emerald stared at Mercury with was enough for the boy to hastily retract his arm back to his side, looking for anything that could be a convenient excuse to distract the angry green-haired girl.

"Oh look, Tukson's Book Trade. Ladies first?"

The glare softened to one of mild, passive hatred and excessive annoyance, the typical look Emerald wore around most people when she wasn't hiding, and the dark-skinned girl opened the door, stepping through into the bookstore, accompanied by the standard door chime that sounded, like most, if not all, stores in Vale.

No one was manning the counter, but a voice still sounded out nonetheless. "Welcome to Tukson's Book Trade, home to every book under the sun! If you'll give me a moment, I'll be right with you!"

The sound of shuffling could be heard throughout the empty store, as Mercury shut the door behind him, his compatriot standing at the front of the desk.

The man, presumably Tukson, emerged from the back of the store, stepping through the door with mild hesitation, before donning the friendliest customer-service smile he could. "Can I help you?"

"Hi, I was just wondering if you had any copies of 'The Thief and The Butcher?" Emerald asked, her voice far sweeter than usual.

"Uh, yes, I believe we do," Tukson replied, looking around at the two.

"That's great!" Emerald exclaimed, exaggerated happiness imbuing every word.

"Would you like a copy?" Tukson asked, thrown off guard.

"No, I was just wondering. Oh, what about 'Violet's Garden'? In paperback?"

Tukson took a moment, but Mercury beat him to the answer. "He's got it. Hardback, too."

"Ooh, options are nice!" Emerald said, as Mercury slammed the book shut, uninterested in the contents.

"Do you have any comics?" The steel-haired boy asked.

"Near the front," Tukson replied, his glance jumping between the two.

"Hmm… What about… 'Third Crusade'?" Emerald asked.

The air around Tukson suddenly felt incredibly cold. "I… don't believe we carry that one."

The sound of another book being shut loudly made Tukson jump.

"What was this place called again?" Emerald asked, voice returning to its normal sound.

"Tukson's Book Trade," Tukson answered.

"And you're Tukson?" Emerald asked.

"That's right," Tukson said, glancing between the two again.

"So then I take it that you're the one that came up with the catchphrase?"

Tukson just nodded in response to the girl's question.

"And, what was it again?" Mercury asked.

"Tukson's Book Trade, home to every book under the sun," Tukson repeated.

"Except the 'Third Crusade'," Mercury said.

"It's just a catchphrase," Tukson said.

"It's false advertising!" The steel-haired teen exclaimed.

Emerald leaned forward, placing an elbow on the counter. "You shouldn't make a promise you can't keep, Tukson."

Mercury placed his hand on one of the switches near the door, the leftmost window darkening until it was no longer transparent.

"I hear that you're planning on leaving. Moving all the way to Vacuo," Emerald continued, as Mercury darkened the window that was set into the door.

"Your brothers in the White Fang won't be happy to hear that," Emerald said, as Mercury darkened the final window, smirking at the larger man.

"And neither are we. You know who we are, don't you?" Emerald asked, one hand reaching down as she leant against the countertop.

"Yes."

"And you know why we're here?"

"Yes."

"So…" Emerald spoke, drawing out the word. "Are you going to fight back?"

Emerald didn't receive an answer as the counter exploded, the man charging her, claws protruding from his fingertips.

Emerald flipped back, moving fast enough to clear herself from the man's suicidal charge, his swings uncontrolled and full of rage.

Tukson, it seemed, had no combat training, no tactical awareness, and, as the squelch of boot meeting face sounded, no Aura.

"Would you like to do the honours, Em, or can I?" Mercury asked, leaning over the unconscious faunus that lay on the ground, blood leaking from his broken nose.

"Go on, just make it quick," Emerald replied.

The sound of a shotgun discharging was the only indicator that something had gone amiss inside Tukson's Book Trade, but no one would notice for some time.

* * *

"Aah!" Jaune screamed, as the giant snake lunged at him, jaws snapping shut over where he had been only moments before, the boy dodging out of the way just in time to avoid being punctured by the giant fangs of the bi-headed serpent.

The black head realigned itself in an attempt to bite Jaune again, but the teen wasn't willing to let it plunge that venomous fang into his body anymore than he had been earlier, and he let an electrically-charged _Mana Arrow_ fly, the sparking arrow of Mana flying from his fingertip and hitting the dense scales of the Grimm, discharging against it.

The reptilian Grimm didn't appreciate that, rearing back and letting loose an ear-splitting hiss, which seemed counterproductive, but Jaune wasn't in the mindset to judge the logistics of giant snakes.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha called out, as she opened fire on the white head, the snake letting loose another deafening hiss as a lucky shot pierced it's open maw, splitting flesh, whereas the rest of the rounds simply dented and deflected off the scales.

"I know, Pyrrha!" Jaune replied, as he used his shield to deflect the giant fang of the Grimm to the side.

He didn't even have time to counterattack the Grimm, its head already back in position, readying itself for another lunge.

"I'm not sure how long we can keep this up!" Weiss exclaimed, already critically low on Dust. The girl had resorted to simply waiting for the snake's black head to lunge and then attempt to stab it. So far, she hadn't had any luck, much like the rest of AWBN.

Blake grabbed Pyrrha and leaped backwards as the two cleared the impact zone as the snake's white head lunged once again.

Jaune only had one idea of how to kill this thing, but he really, really didn't want to do it. He also didn't want to explain it, or even think about it, but at this rate, there wasn't much else he could do.

He still wanted to workshop it a little before he plunged into it, so here they were, buying as much time as they could so he could figure something out.

Jaune loosed a barrage of lightning-infused _Mana Bullets_ at the snake's black head, hoping the higher armor-piercing would help him, but it appeared useless, the Mana projectiles simply dissipating upon impact.

It didn't mean it wasn't doing damage, it was, but it was negligible in the long run. Jaune would be here for a few hours if he were to keep doing that. At least he wouldn't run out of Mana, thanks to the perk he'd received.

Jaune jumped sideways to avoid another lunge, something he was becoming rather familiar with, but he wasn't exactly happy with that fact.

Weiss used a glyph beneath her to propel herself, the piercing point of Myrtenaster in front of her, but the blade simply took the path of least resistance, sliding against the scales and off to the side, where Weiss stumbled closer to the snake's torso, or whatever that part of a snake was called.

Jaune quickly distracted the black head, this time with an lightning-infused _Mana Slash_ , the arcing Mana once again dissipating on impact.

It served its purpose, though, giving Weiss time to regain her footing and quickly back away, gaining distance on the giant snake.

"Jaune, if you have any better ideas, now would be the time to implement them, we don't have the luxury of holding this thing off any longer!" Weiss called out.

"She's right, Jaune! Blake and I are almost out of ammunition!" Pyrrha called out.

Jaune swore under his breath.

"Don't be mad!" Jaune exclaimed, and ran at the snake.

Weiss stared wide-eyed as her leader was swallowed whole by the black head of the snake.

* * *

Patch had been peaceful. Her father had been more than happy to house her team, considering half of RRYN already lived there.

Taiyang Xiao Long had gotten along splendidly with Nora and Ren, the pair sharing common traits with her dad.

Nora's excitability and her father's were one and the same, and when Nora found out that Taiyang was an excellent maker-of-breakfast, Ren had volunteered to help out.

It meant that every morning was a feast of grand proportions, Ren's normally hidden competitiveness brought into the limelight as he competed.

Of course, as Ruby and her team rode the ferry back to Vale, the youngest Beacon student couldn't help but have her thoughts stray to her fellow team leader.

Strong, dependable Jaune. His position was the sole comfort Ruby felt as a leader herself. Jaune believed in her, she could tell, and so could her team.

If only she could convince herself.

Ruby let out a sigh, her arms dangling over the railings as she leaned on the railing, watching the sea roll past.

"What's wrong, sis?"

Ruby turned her head to see Yang lean next to her, a concerned look on her face.

Ruby was half-tempted to wave it off as nothing, but her sister was far more perceptive then she seemed, something Ruby was very familiar with.

"I… I don't know. I just feel a little down, I guess. I don't know why."

Yang nodded in understanding, regardless of how vague Ruby's explanation had been. "You miss AWBN."

Ruby didn't know if that was it, but it sounded somewhat similar. "I don't really know. I mean, yeah, I miss them, this first semester has been great, but I can't help but feel like something's… wrong, you know?"

"How so?" Yang asked, slinging a comforting arm around her younger sister's shoulders and pulling her in for a side-hug.

"Just… look at Vale," Ruby said, and Yang did so, gazing towards the city. "It looks so peaceful from a distance, but we still haven't stopped Torchwick or the White Fang. They're still out there, wreaking havoc, and we haven't done anything about it. The eight of us have been at the forefront of a lot of the stuff that's been happening, you know, and it just… I just find myself wondering what's to come, I guess."

Yang studied her sister intently. "You're far more mature than I am, Rubes. I know how you feel a little… insecure… about your position as our leader, but you're way better than I would be. I'm nowhere near as responsible as you are. We'll get them, Ruby. We've just got to be patient, you know?"

Ruby smiled a small smile, and Yang turned the side-hug into a full hug, wrapping Ruby in her arms. "I know how proud Mum would be of you, Ruby."

When Yang released her sister, Ruby looked a little shaky, but absolutely resolute in her convictions. "Thanks, Yang. You always know what to say."

Of course, the moment wouldn't be a typical moment between the Rose-Xiao Long sisters without an interruption of some kind.

"Ruby, Yang. The news is broadcasting reports of a Grimm attack on a border village. Where did Jaune go?" Ren was wearing a concerned expression, and likewise so was Nora, who'd followed him up to the top deck.

Yang looked to her sister, worry in her expression.

"Domremy," Ruby said, and the crestfallen expression Ren wore did nothing but stir up more worry.

"Oh no."

* * *

Weiss, Pyrrha and Blake stared blankly at the spot Jaune had been standing right before he'd charged inside the Elder King Taijitu's black-headed mouth.

The snake itself was far too preoccupied to notice the external threat, surprisingly leaving the three to stare as it squirmed and twisted, doing its best to do… something.

Something the three huntresses-in-training couldn't understand, let alone explain.

"Uh…" Blake said, in shock.

Pyrrha couldn't even formulate words, and Weiss looked as if she'd been slapped.

"Girls!" A voice called, and Weiss jumped, startled.

"Um, Mr Arc…" Blake began, but the man waved it off.

"I've told you to call me Chrys. Where's Jaune?" Chrys asked, looking around. Likewise behind him the rest of the Arc family, aside from Daisy, Marigold and Azalea, were scanning around for a sign of the leader of AWBN.

"He's… uh…" Pyrrha began, but Weiss summed it up rather well.

"He leaped inside the King Taijitu."

Chrys stared at the giant snake Grimm in shock. "Oh."

The serpentine Grimm was still squirming, in obvious discomfort as something seemed to be causing pain on the inside.

"Why did he leap inside the Taijitu?" Juniper asked, a worried expression on her face

"Um…" Blake said again, unable to really formulate coherent sentences.

It was at this point the black head of the snake swallowed the white head.

* * *

If Jaune was going to be honest, he wasn't having a great time.

This was, without a doubt, his worst idea ever.

This was even worse than asking the neighbour's daughter on a date, only to be turned down because he was an awkward stuttering mess who looked more like a mop than a boy.

Of course, he was getting sidetracked.

The more pressing matter at hand was the pressing matter of the inside of the Taijitu, the flesh squeezing down on his body as he squirmed inside it, barely able to breath.

It smelled heavily of something Jaune couldn't pinpoint, but the air was thick, thick enough that Jaune swore he could see it.

Crocea Mors was still drawn, of course, as was his shield, but it was impossible to move it without it getting caught on red, sticky flesh.

He could feel the acid on his skin, too. It was burning away at his clothes, at his armor, and only his sword and shield were seemingly resistant to the corrosiveness of the internals of the giant serpent.

Jaune couldn't work up any kind of force to drive Crocea Mors into the thick, rippling flesh, he had no space to work with, but he retracted his shield into a sheath, doing his best to attach it back to his belt. Or what was left of his belt, anyway, the leather being slowly but surely digested, as he would be too.

His skin was being eaten away by the acid, and Jaune continued to wince in pain as it dissolved and repaired, only to begin the cycle again.

It was digesting him, and even with Jaune's HP and regenerative capabilities, he would be consumed, sooner rather than later.

Jaune wasn't about to go down without a fight, though.

There wasn't enough room for something explosive, and projectiles weren't going to do enough damage to free him anytime soon…

' _Mana Blast could work, but I don't think it'll get past the scales,'_ Jaune thought, even as the acid ate through his skin.

It had gotten to a point where his vision was hazy, and a drop of acid had eaten its way through his cheek, only to be healed.

' _What do I do, what do I do?!'_ Jaune thought, considering his options.

He needed something that had an area-of-effect, but was still strong enough to kill the Taijitu before he was dissolved.

So, Jaune figured that he might as well visualize that, and focus his Mana, somehow shape it into that.

It was, of course, easier said than done, especially when a drop of the acid landed on his eye, searing through the ocular organ and causing Jaune to scream in pain for a moment before it faded, but he still focused.

And then, all of a sudden, he succeeded.

The flesh began to squirm faster, and Jaune soon realised that he had no idea which way was up.

Jaune could see the colour leaching out of the Grimm flesh, the bright red turning dark, the acid dissolving itself in a way Jaune couldn't comprehend.

It wasn't dissolving itself, though, as Jaune took a closer look. Instead it seemed to have latched onto the air itself, tinged a faint blue, and was feasting away at it, though the air seemed to be fighting back.

It took Jaune a few seconds, amidst the squirming flesh, that it wasn't just air.

It was Mana. His Mana. Whatever skill he'd created, whatever spell it was, it seemed to layer the air thick with Mana, and sap away at the very lifeforce of the Grimm.

Hell, it seemed to sap away at everything, except for him.

The Taijitu was in pain, that much was obvious, and it was dying. It seemed to have decided Jaune was the reason for this, as he hadn't dissolved yet, so it did something that Jaune didn't expect.

Squeezing its way through the flesh of the inside of the black part of the giant snake Grimm was the white head, red eyes glaring at the boy with furious intensity.

"No, no no no no!" Jaune began to exclaim, himself squirming in order to get as much distance from the head as he could, the flesh rippling around as the snake swallowed itself deeper and deeper in an attempt to get at him.

It was the most confusing thing Jaune had ever thought about, and he couldn't understand it, but he knew that no matter which direction he headed, he would be getting closer to the white head.

It was very strange to think about.

Crocea Mors and his shield weren't going to be very effective at defending him in such a small space, and no matter how flexible the Taijitu was, there was no way it could open it's mouth wide enough to bite him, so he found himself wondering how much of a threat the Taijitu was.

That was when it's mouth opened very slightly, clamped down on his exposed leg, and began dragging him back through the fleshy internals of the black part of the snake.

"Oh, no, no, why me!" Jaune exclaimed, as the acid that wasn't preoccupied with attempting to dissolve the Mana affixed itself to his skin, burning away at it.

Jaune wasn't in agony, per se. It was painful, incredibly so, but the combination of _System Body_ healing the burns and the adrenaline rushing through his body was enough to limit what he could feel. Also the shock, that helped.

He was definitely in a lesser kind of shock.

He could see light, though.

His HP was down in the fifties, now, and he didn't have the luxury of using his Aura to block the attacks, because the acid wasn't an attack.

There was more time to think about that later, though, because the white head had drawn him out of the mouth of the black head and flung him with speed, chasing after him, fangs bared, hissing loudly.

It did something strange before it made it to him, though.

The white head slumped onto the ground, red eyes fading to a grey, and the scales beginning to flake into ash.

The black head had done the same, as well.

And the little clusters of blue Mana that clung to the inside and outside of the Elder King Taijitu faded slowly, taking little chunks of black ash along with them.

Jaune clambered to his feet from the bush he'd landed in, brushing himself off of any lingering acid, looked towards where his team was, and noticed three things.

The first was that there was more people than just his team standing there.

Second, there was a Bullhead landed behind the crowd of people.

Thirdly, almost all of them were blushing and averting their eyes.

The third observation was enough of a tell to inform Jaune that most of his clothes had probably not survived his serpent-dive, and as he looked down, he was able to confirm that theory.

"Aw, that hoodie took fifty box-tops!"

* * *

The good news, Domremy was safe.

The bad news, Jaune had been reduced to freshly healed skin, scattered fragments of clothing, and his armor had been almost completely digested, leaving only fragments of the cheap steel behind.

Also not only had RRYN commandeered a Bullhead to help with the relief efforts at Domremy, and arrived just in time to see him be flung out of the intestines of a snake by that same snake's head, but they'd also seen him wearing barely anything but acid and scrapped clothing.

Not Jaune's brightest moment, that's for certain.

He'd get over it, sure, but that didn't mean it wasn't going to linger in his head for the rest of his life, popping up at inopportune moments to embarrass him, or make him squirm in anguish at his misfortune, like late at night when he couldn't sleep.

Like, for example, right now, as he looked over the results of the invasion from the privacy of his own bed.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 264276XP!]**

Jaune didn't even read the next line, in complete shock.

He re-read it to make sure he was reading it correctly.

He re-read it a third time. It wasn't twenty-six thousand.

There were six digits. Six.

Two-hundred-thousand XP.

Well, two-hundred and sixty-four-thousand, two-hundred and seventy-six XP, specifically.

That was a lot.

Jaune kept reading.

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 18!]**

 **[+30 Skill Points!]**

 **[Skills Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Quake (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can channel and direct Mana into the ground, causing a small, localized earthquake. Costs 160 MP to cast._ _ **Level 17; XP 42325/58956.**_ **]**

 **[** _ **Mana Calamity (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can create a plane of Mana that saps the very life out of all within it. Costs 150 MP per cast, and lasts 1 minute._ _ **Level 17; XP 42325/58956.**_ **]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[** _ **Aura Control**_ **has reached Level 18!]**

 **[** _ **Enduring**_ **has reached Level 17!]**

 **[** _ **Power**_ **has reached Level 17!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Arrow**_ **has reached Level 17!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Blast**_ **has reached Level 18!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Bullet**_ **has reached Level 17!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Grenade**_ **has reached Level 17!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Slash**_ **has reached Level 18!]**

 **[** _ **Dodge**_ **has reached Level 17!]**

 **[** _ **Observe**_ **has reached Level 17!]**

 **[** _ **Shield Bash**_ **has reached Level 17!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: One-Handed Melee**_ **has reached Level 18!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Shield**_ **has reached Level 18!]**

 **[A title has ranked up!]**

 **[You are now a Huntsman Apprentice!]**

Jaune didn't necessarily feel more powerful, but the thirty skill points begged to differ. He could have some fun with those.

Well, fun in the sense that he could maybe help prevent his skin from being eaten away whilst he was still alive because his only idea was to jump inside a giant two-headed snake monster, but still. Fun.

Of course, there were other things he needed to consider. The couple thousand Lien, the Elder Taijitu Fang, and the Elder Taijitu Scales (four of them) that had dropped in the fight were variables in the grand experiment that was his semblance, but he was mostly concerned about the fact that he no longer really had any kind of combat gear to wear. He was down to a spare pair of pants and a slightly-ratty hoodie that needed some repairs.

Of course, Jaune also had a few ideas concerning both the Lien and the Grimm drops he'd gotten, but that would have to come at a point where he had time.

Right now, though, he needed sleep. It'd been a long day, and they were headed back to Beacon in the morning, ready for the first day of semester the day after they returned.

So, Jaune decided to sleep.

Everything would still be there in the morning, of course.

He'd never noticed the shadowy spectator that had lingered in the darkness of the forest, watching his every move, since the invasion had started.

* * *

 **Well, that about does it for the chapter this week. I'd say it was a little rushed, partly because I had major writer's block, and didn't have a plan. I started it ten hours ago, and didn't stop until it was done, just forcing my way through, otherwise there'd be no chapter.**

 **Not much for me to go into this time, other than that the amount of XP is balanced, he killed quite a few Grimm last chapter, and the Taijitu was worth a not-so-inconsiderable amount either.**

 **Now, for reviews!**

 **The Forgotten 1: You aren't necessarily wrong, and maybe a triplicate system would be more effective. It's just a matter of mixing and matching the elements I have until they suit what I need. Maybe it'll end up being an immensely complicated mess, and it won't even get used. I'll wait until it may happen before I delve into it.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Yes.**

 **SentinalSlice: Well, guess what's in store! Also they did play other games, I just wanted to focus on Remnant: The Game, as it is the only established game we've seen aside from a fighting game, and that doesn't really convey what I was trying to get across. Oh well, all the more time for that in the future.**

 **Arsinis: Are we saying Ozpin isn't super-knowledgeable in canon?**

 **SaintMichael95: They suck, but they're so good for establishing dramatic tension. And making it so I don't have to write anymore. More the latter, to be honest.**

 **Pyropuppet: Don't worry, you didn't sound whiny. I'm glad to have anyone reviewing, it doesn't matter what they're saying. You're doing fine, and I'm glad you're enjoying it! Also yes, better sigils sooner or later.**

 **TypedSomeWords: Placing Sigils on weapons and objects will be known as Runes, for a few specific reasons. As for Spell Sigils, they simply serve as placeable, triggerable spells, for the sake of it. If Jaune gets a teleport spell, you can bet you're fine ass he'll be able to use the teleport sigil. I'm glad you're liking Pyrrha, and hooray, Alcmena! You are right, I went back and watched the episode, they are armed. My bad. Warthog puns, too. A man of many talents. Yeah, Cardin. It may not have been obvious. Also 'Planning', yeah, sure. We'll go with that. Gods you're great at detailed reviews, there are quite a few reviewers who make me really read through. Gotta give Weiss her credit, she's competitive to a fault, and hates failure. Accidental references to books and movies also seem to be my forte, and I'm glad you're liking the team choice. Thanks for the detailed, consistent reviews!**

 **Rescue9911: I update weekly, don't worry you're pretty little butt. Patience is a virtue, padawan, or something along those lines. That's probably a line in star wars somewhere, right?**

 **And that's all for reviews this week! I'll leave you with my seemingly regular reminder that I do have a Pa Treon, and if you want to support me even slightly, I'd greatly appreciate it.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	19. Touch My Breadstick

**A conclusion chapter to the mini-arc. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Take care, son. Make sure to stay with your team, and please don't make me remind you that jumping inside Grimm is not a valid strategy for killing them."

Jaune scratched the back of his head, abashed. "Yeah, Dad, I remember. You and Mum only told me a few hundred times."

Jaune's father stared down at the teen with a well-intentioned frown. "You did ask for it when you jumped inside the Taijitu. You're lucky you didn't get hurt."

"Yeah, lucky me…" Jaune said with another head-scratch, a half-hearted smile on his face.

Chrys wrapped Jaune in a tight hug, before quickly releasing him, lest the father-son hug got too awkward.

Jaune felt his mother wrap her arms around him next, gripping him tight, for much longer than his father had. "I'm going to miss you so much, darling!" Juniper exclaimed, doing her best to make her son feel as awkward as possible with the prolonged contact and the exaggerated speech.

She was going to miss him, naturally, what kind of mother wouldn't? But she needed to punish him somehow, and as he hadn't done anything technically wrong, she couldn't technically punish him. So, the awkwardness would be his to deal with.

He'd already said goodbye to his sisters, and so he gave his family a wave as he began the walk back towards town, his team waving also as they too said their goodbyes.

They enjoyed the ambient silence of nature as they headed down the road, and it was some time before any of them spoke.

But, as was tradition, silence couldn't last in AWBN, much to Blake's chagrin.

"You're family was lovely, Jaune. Thank you for inviting us to stay for the break," Pyrrha said, smiling wide.

Once again following tradition, the next to speak was Weiss. "Yes, Jaune, thank you for the offer. I have to say, I'm surprised. I expected your family to be much the same as yourself, I must say I'm pleased that wasn't the case."

Jaune gave Weiss a droll look. "Would it really pain you that much to compliment me for once?"

"Absolutely."

Blake, of course, was almost always last to speak. The least verbose of the team was happy to let conversation do as conversation did, but this time she felt the need to add to it. "Thanks, Jaune. I haven't had a place like that to stay in for… a while."

Jaune gave the black-haired girl a smile. "No problem, all of you. My family wanted to meet you anyway, so it all worked out in the end."

"Apart from when you jumped inside a giant snake," Weiss felt the need to mention.

"It worked!" Jaune exclaimed in reply.

"I wouldn't say worked. More like… didn't not work," Blake said.

"Thanks, Blake, I guess I can always rely on you to invent a third state of existence when it comes to my plans."

A new semester of Beacon was going to begin, and AWBN were still catching up with RRYN.

Their technically-not-hijacked Bullhead had to be returned, and so they had done so, that very night.

He'd even said his goodbyes, once he was clothed once more, and not covered in acidic Grimm bile.

Jaune shuddered at the thought of it.

If his parents, sisters, friends, teammates and own self hadn't drilled that jumping into the mouth of a Grimm was a bad idea, the memory of the Taijitu's gullet was certainly enough of a reminder.

"So, what are we expecting from classes this semester?" Jaune asked, grabbing at whatever topic he could think of to rid his mind of the unpleasant phantom sensation of having his eye melt in its socket.

Weiss, who at this point had probably memorised the entire syllabus for the next four years, including optional classes, answered with ease. "Well, our classes are mostly the same, though we'll be moving into more in-depth, advanced topics, and our sparring class will change a little, but the biggest thing is going to be the Vytal Festival."

Pyrrha had a grin on her face at the mention of the festival. "Excited, Pyrrha?" Jaune asked.

"I must admit, it has been some time since I've fought in an arena. I do miss the sport, at least a little," Pyrrha replied, looking slightly guilty.

"Well, with myself, Blake's evasion, Weiss's glyphs, and your experience, we should have a pretty good chance. What do you guys think?"

"We'll certainly be trying to win, that's for sure. Our image is on the line!" Weiss exclaimed frantically, Pyrrha nodding in mild agreement.

"I hate to break it to you guys, though, but I can't use my semblance in the festival. At least, not parts that the public haven't seen."

Weiss and Pyrrha's face dropped slightly at that.

"Hey, I'm not useless! I just can't go all out on our opponents, that's all," Jaune exclaimed. "Though, come to think of it, how does the Vytal Festival work?"

Pyrrha, the most experienced tournament fighter of this generation, finally found a subject she was vastly informed on, and a reason to talk about it. "It begins as a team versus team fight, with the next round in the bracket being a two on two, and the final round in the bracket being one on one fights. It ends with a massive fight between all the bracket winners in a free-for-all fight to determine the winner."

Jaune nodded as he listened. "So, if we were to come up with a strategy, we'd be sending Pyrrha all the way through into the free-for-all?"

"Well, I don't know if I'm that good-" Pyrrha began, only to be interrupted as Blake and Weiss voiced their agreement with Jaune's preliminary strategy.

"Pyrrha, don't downplay your own abilities. You worked hard for them, accept them. We won't be unhappy with you owning your success," Jaune comforted, giving the redhead a smile.

Pyrrha seemed to perk up at that, and Jaune was glad to see his team in high spirits.

After all, the Vytal Festival wasn't all they had to be concerned about this semester.

* * *

Beacon was bustling as students rushed about, getting themselves ready for the Tuesday that indicated the beginning of the second part of the year's lessons.

Jaune and his team were no exception, having arrived back at Beacon in time for the lunch rush.

As AWBN wandered into the cafeteria, a shout echoed out across the tables and chairs, all attended by the students of all four years of attendance.

"Jaune, Weiss, Pyrrha, Blake, over here!"

The shout came from Ruby, her red-cloaked form jumping up and down with a frantic waving hand motion going on, doing her best to attract their attention.

Weiss rolled her eyes at Ruby's behaviour, and Blake gave her trademark slight-smile, but Jaune and Pyrrha, the more vocal and less, well, icy of AWBN waved back, the four making their way through the crowds of varyingly worried Huntsman-and-Huntresses-in-training to take their trademark seats at the table they had effectively claimed as their own.

"Hey, guys, it's good to see you!" Ruby greeted.

"Yeah, especially now that you're wearing clothes, Jaune!" Nora exclaimed, far too loud for Jaune's tastes.

"Eh-heh," Came his eloquent reply.

"Nora, please," Ren said, exasperatedly attempting to relinquish Nora's attitude.

Besides Nora and Yang, there wasn't anyone at the table who would look him in the eye.

"Alright, I get it. I shouldn't have jumped inside the Taijitu! I know it was dumb! Please stop bringing it up!" Jaune cried out, smacking his head against the table, face burning bright red as _System Mind_ completely ignored the fact that his embarrassment could technically be construed as a negative mental effect.

"Hey, I know a few people out there who would've enjoyed the show. I guess we can't be calling you scrawny anymore, huh?" Yang teased, and Jaune's head came back up from the table just to thud back down.

"Please stop…" Jaune moaned.

"Aw, I'm just teasing, Jauney, lighten up."

The only response was Jaune's muffled groan.

"Besides, we wouldn't be good friends if we kept snaking around the issue, would we?" Yang said, and this time the entire table groaned.

"Yang, as your leader, I'm ordering you to stop teasing Jaune and making puns," Ruby said, mustering as much authority into her voice as she could.

It didn't sway the blonde one single bit. "Aw, but Rubes, you want me to say nothing for the rest of our time at Beacon?!"

Ruby, to her credit, didn't miss a beat. "Absolutely."

Yang's hand pressed against the flesh above her heart in mock horror. "My own sister, stabbing me in the back like this! How could I see it coming!"

"As interesting as it is watching these two go at it in poor attempts of quick wit, we should prepare ourselves for tomorrow's lessons. I've got notes from last semester we can go over, and I imagine that Ren does as well. Should we pool our resources and work together?" Weiss looked towards Ren as she spoke, receiving a confirmatory nod from the calm teen.

"Or, and hear me out Weiss, we could go and, as a joint team operation, enjoy ourselves!" Ruby exclaimed, leaping out of her seat.

Jaune lifted his head off the table.

"Absolutely not. We don't have the luxury of being able to waste time-" Weiss began, but Jaune held up a hand.

"No, Weiss, I want to hear what Ruby has to suggest," Jaune said.

Ruby began to pace back and forth behind her seat. "Sisters, friends, Weiss-"

"Hey!"

"-Four score and seven minutes ago, I had a dream!" Ruby continued, unabated by Weiss's interruption. "A dream that the eight of us will come together, as sister teams-"

"I still resent that," Jaune interrupted.

"-and have the most fun anybody has ever had in the history of ever!" Ruby finished, raising her hands above her head in preparation for a cheer.

"Not once did you specify what we would be doing," Weiss said under her breath.

"I don't know. I think I might sit this out…" Blake said.

Yang caught a grape in her mouth, one that Nora flung at her, before turning to face the resident faunus. "What's wrong, Blakey? Still worried about the White Fang?"

Blake initially went to defend herself from that accusation, but stopped. "Yeah, I am. We haven't heard of anything for a little while now, and Torchwick's gone underground, or at least as far as we know. I'm worried that something big is coming."

Yang scooped another grape from the air with her mouth. "Well, I guess we can figure something out tonight, right sis?"

Ruby nodded in agreement. "We've already told you guys that we want to help, and I want Torchwick caught as much as you do. Besides, the eight of us have a better chance than four, or two, or a single person."

The meaning behind that didn't go unnoticed to Blake, who made a point of looking at anything other than her friends.

"I have a vested interest in stopping Torchwick and the White Fang also, Blake, I hope you haven't forgotten. I think we should-" Weiss began, only to be interrupted by the most heinous of things.

A pie to the face.

Nora stared sheepishly at the mess she'd created, and the fury she'd wrought.

"Oh no," Jaune muttered, and the notification that pinged didn't give him any respite.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Food Fight!**_ **]**

 **[Win the food fight!]**

 **[Rewards: 20000 XP, Skill Book]**

* * *

Jaune and Pyrrha were cowered behind an upturned table, as it was consistently pelted by cans of somehow explosive soda.

"How! How are they exploding!" Jaune exclaimed, ducking his head as his hair became matted with grape flavoured liquid.

Pyrrha was only able to offer her partner a confused shrug before she quickly rolled to the adjacent cover, an overturned vending machine.

"Any ideas, Jaune?!" Blake shouted from her cover behind one of the stone pillars that held up the roof.

"How am I supposed to plan for this?!" Jaune cried out in response, as he ditched an unexploded can over his cover towards his opponents.

"Anything would be preferable to nothing, Arc!" Weiss screamed out, as she ducked underneath a leek that embedded itself in the wall behind her.

Jaune ran through numerous ideas in his head.

"Pyrrha, take on Yang! Weiss, you've got Nora, Blake, take Ren! I'll handle Ruby!" Jaune called out, before tossing Weiss a swordfish from one of the remaining tables that had stayed standing.

Pyrrha and Blake likewise armed themselves, grabbing breadsticks and molding them into the weaponry they required.

And Jaune decided to stay unarmed. Ruby didn't have Crescent Rose, so he was equally skilled in hand to hand as he assumed she was.

The four waited a moment before Pyrrha stood, pushing her arms wide as a wave of black energy caught the inbound canned projectiles and pushed them aside. "Now!" Pyrrha called out, and the four broke cover, rushing at the enemy.

Jaune didn't know if this was going to work.

* * *

Blake was closing in on Ren, and she vaulted over the table that was between the two, her heels coming in to deliver a powerful dropkick on the teen, who blocked it with those remarkably sturdy leeks he held.

The force behind the kick still drove the boy back a foot, and she quickly used that to her advantage, rushing in with a flourishing spin, the baguette she'd split in two, one end in each hand, arcing towards his body.

The boy was equally adept in dual-wielding, however, as the leeks blocked the strike, disrupting her flow, and sweeping in towards her body.

Blake wasn't going to take the hit, or she would, but only to his eyes.

She leapt over his head as he struck what he thought was her, the clone she'd left behind bursting into shadows as she aimed a kick at his head from the air.

Ren was impressively fast on his feet, though, and he rolled forwards in a dodge, coming up into a slide on his feet, his grip on his leeks twisting to hold them in reverse.

Blake landed on her feet, knees bending slightly as she impacted, but otherwise ready to pounce into an attack.

Both fighters stared at each other with far more seriousness than the situation demanded, neither willing to give ground to the other, and yet neither willing to overextend.

A standoff, if you would.

Elsewhere in the cafeteria, a much louder, strenuous fight was occuring.

Yang, turkey on each hand, swung fist after fist at Pyrrha, who used her baguette to redirect every blow, knocking them to the side.

Both fighters had smiles on their faces as they attacked and defended, their mutual love for the thrill of combat evident as they traded probing attacks.

Neither fighter was willing to commit to an all-out attack, much like Blake and Ren, but the power of each hit far exceeded their black-haired compatriots.

"C'mon, P-money, this all you got?!" Yang exclaimed, attempting to goad Pyrrha into making a move.

Pyrrha, for her part, had dealt with far more enraging comments before, simply smiled in response. "I don't know Yang, you seem to be holding back yourself. Or is this all you can manage. It must be hard on you, being second place all the time."

Yang was far less experienced in handling smack-talk, and even less experienced in knowing how to control her temper. The blonde's eyes flickered red for a moment as her anger got the better of her.

Yang let loose a roar as she charged in, right fist reared back in preparation for a cross, and Pyrrha allowed her to get close enough to unleash it, before swivelling her hips to the side.

The punch missed by less than an inch, and Pyrrha used that to jab the end of the baguette into Yang's undefended stomach with ease, before capitulating on the opening she'd made, bringing the other end of the weaponized loaf down on Yang's head with enough force to drive the blonde into the concrete, cracks spider-webbing from the impact point.

The sound of Pyrrha's punishing blow almost distracted Weiss from her engagement with Nora, RRYN's self-declared powerhouse. Technically, Jaune had managed to defeat her before, and if Nora could be beaten by her leader, Weiss believed that she too could beat her.

Despite the fact that Jaune had also beaten her, but that was beside the point.

Nora swung again, the metal pole with the watermelon plunged into the end missing Weiss by a hair's breadth as she took a half-pace back, swordfish still pointed at the ginger girl, who's manic look was making Weiss feel the slightest bit nervous. The horizontal swing meant that Weiss had all of about a second before the counterswing brought that immense weapon back towards her, so she quickly stepped forward, stabbing the point of the swordfish towards Nora, who stepped back. It was a probing attack, designed to test Nora's reactions, but it also served the purpose of pushing Nora out of reach of Weiss.

The white-haired girl was confident she could handle Nora, but defeat her?

That might be a bit of a stretch, because as far as Weiss was aware, Nora didn't tire out easily.

Of course, all the fighting was interrupted as Jaune went sailing through the air and impacted against the far wall with a colossal thud, Ruby flying along with him, the point of her knee in his chest.

In direct combat, they may have bitten off more than they could chew.

* * *

Jaune kept his eyes on his target, his fellow leader, but that didn't mean he didn't take a quick glance at his team as they split off to pursue their own targets.

He had faith they could at least fend them off, keep them from ganging up on his team, but he couldn't focus on that. He had to focus on Ruby, who was watching with interest as Jaune barreled towards her.

She wasn't going to let him make the first move, of course, speeding in to engage him, and his arms went up in an instinctive block as her fist impacted with far more force than he had been expecting.

He felt his block buckle, and his feet skidded along the concrete tiles as he was driven back, her arms packing far more strength than he'd been expecting. Of course, she had to be strong to lift Crescent Rose, so Jaune didn't know why he'd been expecting her to be physically underpowered.

Her speed seemed to assist her attacks, too, as she quickly used the immense boost in velocity to hammer his block into submission, the teen barely having enough time to make an attack of his own. He seemed to have underestimated the leader of RRYN, and now that he thought about it, she was made leader for a reason, even if that reason was similar to his.

He didn't actually know what that reason was, of course, but it was enough that he should've picked up on it and taken his approach with far more care and planning than he had.

Ruby decided, at that exact moment, Jaune deserved a full-speed dropkick.

Jaune didn't know what he'd done to deserve it, but by the gods he deserved it, probably.

Her boot-clad feet impacted against Jaune's blocking arms and sent him stumbling backwards, block broken as he used his arms to flail about in an attempt to maintain his balance.

When he managed to achieve said balance, he looked up just in time to see Ruby on the wall, knees bent.

She launched at him, spiralling through the air fast enough that she seemed to simply blur into a red projectile, trailing rose petals, and Jaune felt _Sixth Sense_ trigger as her knee impacted his chest, carrying him along into the far wall, where he unleashed a grunt of agony as he felt his Aura do its best to protect him from what would've been a broken ribcage combined with a broken spine.

Ruby placed her other leg against the wall and flipped off, landing delicately as Jaune felt the wall crack around him, finally allowing him to hit the ground with a thud.

"Ow…" Jaune groaned out, as he slowly but surely climbed to his feet.

Ruby looked surprised as Jaune shakily grasped the edge of the table he'd landed next to, panting heavily but still managing to stare at his opponent.

"Wow, Jaune, you're hard to put down," Ruby remarked.

"Thanks, Ruby. I really appreciate it," Jaune replied sarcastically. "Glad we had to find this out the hard way."

"In my defense, you did underestimate me. I didn't get into Beacon by chance."

Jaune nodded. "That's fair, and I deserve it. I won't underestimate you this time."

Ruby's silver eyes widened slightly as Jaune threw the table at her with a heave.

Aura-enhanced strength was useful for many things, and whilst all those with Aura possessed it, it seemed he wasn't solely guilty of underestimating his opponent.

Ruby was fast enough to simply dash to the side of the table, but Jaune wasn't expecting it to hit, as he used it as a distraction to grab a weapon.

Much like his partner Jaune held the end of a large baguette, giving it a preliminary twirl to test the heft and balance of the loaf of bread he was planning on using as a weapon, which was not something he'd ever expected to have to do.

Ruby looked a little more nervous as he took a single step forwards, bread in hand, and she took a step back.

Jaune wasn't going to let her escape his reach, though, and he knew that there would be no way he could land an attack if she wasn't distracted.

So, he decided to distract her.

He focused Mana into his free hand and threw it, a _Mana Flash_ arcing through the air where it landed just in front of the red-cloaked girl.

She looked at it curiously for a split-second before it detonated, the piercing light giving the girl a reason to let out a scream that was almost drowned out by the deafening sound the _Mana Flash_ released, but Jaune had been prepared, rushing in to deliver a strike.

Ruby had tripped on some food, sitting flat and rubbing at her eyes, and Jaune slowed. It didn't seem fair, or sporting to simply attack her while she was down.

So, in the concept of being fair and sporting, he grabbed a chain of sausages and hogtied her where she sat.

He didn't have to worry about her team attacking him while he did so, either, as they were still occupied with fighting his team.

Weiss ducked another strike of Nora's melon-hammer, before a glyph beneath her feet spun to life, giving the white-haired girl preternatural speed, launching her forward swordfish-point first into Nora, sending the ginger flying backwards, head over heels.

Of course, Weiss wasn't unscathed, but she'd won.

Blake had picked up a chain of sausages and was using them as a whip, having tied them to the base of one of her half-baguettes.

Ren was on the defensive, the combination of Blake's evasiveness and her highly-specialised fighting style, as unorthodox as it was, making it nigh impossible for Ren to land an attack, the boy constantly having to block attack after attack as she kept him on his toes, until she managed to disarm him of one of his leeks.

At that point, the fight was a predefined conclusion, as she delivered far more punishing attacks without the threat of retaliation.

Ren soon buckled under the attacks, hitting the ground hard as Blake landed one half-baguette against his head.

Pyrrha and Yang, however. That was an interesting series of events.

Yang had clambered back to her feet with a vengeance, eyes glowing red as she began a flurry of blows possessing far more speed and power than before.

The blonde wanted the fight to end fast, she wanted to pummel her opponent, and Pyrrha was having none of it.

Every jab missed, every cross evaded, every uppercut knocked aside, and with every attack that failed Yang only became more and more angry. She couldn't hurt what she couldn't touch.

Pyrrha was technically on the defensive, but that was a debatable topic. She had Yang on the ropes, using the blonde's anger to goad her into over-extending, and delivering a devastating blow onto the girl.

Yang refused to go down, however, her hair bursting into flames as she continued to strike, blow after blow after blow, all missing their mark through Pyrrha's expert influence.

Yang roared, actually roared, in anger as she missed each attack, before the final hit came down, the overhead strike snapping both the baguette and Yang's tenuous grip on consciousness as the girl hit the ground with more force than before, quite literally making an imprint on the concrete.

And Pyrrha quickly joined Yang on the floor, collapsing to her knees in exhaustion.

"How! You've barely been back for a day!" Goodwitch screamed out in anger, frustration, exasperation and all sorts of flitting emotions that Jaune would've struggled to name in succession.

Jaune was suddenly thinking that being digested by a King Taijitu was a lesser punishment than what Goodwitch was going to deliver.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Food Fight!**_ **]**

 **[Win the food fight!]**

 **[Rewards: 20000 XP, Skill Book]**

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Improvised Melee (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of wielding all improvised melee weapons without difficulty! The higher the level of this skill, the more skilled you are with all improvised melee weapons, and the more damage you are capable of dealing._ _ **Level 1; XP 6/12.**_ **]**

* * *

Jaune was infinitely thankful Ozpin had calmed Goodwitch, because he wasn't sure he could deal with the stern professor's idea of punishment. Even those who hadn't been involved in the food fight had been looking nervous.

Well, looking nervous from outside the windows of the cafeteria, having been peering in to watch the two premier first year teams duke it out with food and drink based weapons, but still.

Their room appeared to be untouched from the last time they'd been inside it two weeks ago, apart from the fine layer of dust that coated some of the things that lay inside, but that could be taken care of rather fast.

And, as per the norm, Jaune was currently taking a shower.

Granted, it was early afternoon, but he felt he deserved it after being summarily coated in foodstuffs.

He'd been the polite team leader he usually was by letting the girls shower first, and at this point he was honestly getting used to the feeling of being coated in filth. It was starting to become a common enough occurence that Jaune was considering using the men's locker room shower after every day.

He wouldn't, though, because that would mean having to interact with other people, and he was awkward enough already without adding an extra element to all of his conversations.

Once he finished drying himself off and dressing himself in a greatly inferior hoodie, amongst other items of clothing, he stepped out of the bathroom.

Weiss was sat at one of the desks, going over her notes from last semester. Blake had headed out to the library for an unspecified reason, and Pyrrha had decided to do some training in the gym, most likely accompanied by a conscious Yang, who seemed to spend most of her free time there.

"Studying going well, Weiss?" Jaune asked, making idle conversation.

"I used to be so studious, I'd be ahead of the class, sometimes weeks ahead. And now, I can't fathom why I'd need to be. What did you do to me, Arc?" Weiss complained.

Jaune laughed. "I guess real experience is worth more than what's written in a book. You've gotten a taste for combat, I guess."

Weiss closed her notebook with a huff. "It would appear so. Anything to speak about in regards to your semblance?"

Jaune gave the white-haired girl a nod. "Yeah. That food fight, it was a quest. We won, it completed the quest, and I got twenty-thousand XP and a skill book. Want to take a look with me?"

"After all your posturing about books and real experience, only to pull a one-eighty and read a book. You continue to prove that you have no idea what you're doing," Weiss pointed out.

Jaune froze for a moment. "Oh. Uh…"

"Ugh, nevermind. Just read the damn book."

Jaune did so, navigating his inventory until he reached in and pulled the book out from nothing, or at least that was how it appeared to Weiss.

"I must admit, that does catch me off guard still."

Jaune gave her a smirk. "Trust me, it does to me too."

Jaune turned the book over in his hand, reading the title. "'The Art of Speed'? Sounds interesting."

He took a seat on his bed and Weiss, interested, sat next to him, both peering at the first page.

' _Speed is a concept that is simple to grasp, and complicated to understand. Speed, as it is defined in the laws of physics, is the measure of distance travelled per unit of time. Simple. Yet there is more to speed, though not in its definition. The biggest question I find myself asked is how fast can something go? The easy answer is the speed of light, and the only thing that could reach that speed would be, of course, light, but no one likes the easy answer. So, I find myself answering with the fun answer. As fast as you want. There are recorded tales of people with speed semblances of all sorts, from pure speed boosts to reaction times to all sorts, but fast is never fast enough. So, I decided to see just how fast a person like me could go. The short answer is fast. The long answer is the rest of this book. In it I detail what speeds I reach, how much it took, and the aftermath of reaching that speed. And, as a little hint for what's to come, I go really, really fast.'_

Jaune and Weiss stared as the rest of the book fell blank, as if it was empty.

Weiss was confused, but Jaune had come to expect this, and so he accepted the notification that had popped up.

The book glowed the bright, light blue that all skill books did whenever he learned the skill, and Weiss's eyebrows shot up in recognition.

"You liar!" Weiss exclaimed, standing upright, finger pointed right at the blond teen.

Jaune was too busy reading the new skill he'd received to pay attention to the white-haired heiress.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Flash Step (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can infuse your legs with Mana, allowing you to dash in any direction at incredible speeds, even when in the air. Costs 50 MP to cast. Flash Step lasts for ten seconds, regardless of how much it is used within that time-frame._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

"Woah…" Jaune uttered, and Weiss was immediately even more frustrated.

"You can't just mutter about it! Tell me!" She exclaimed, annoyed.

Jaune proceeded to read the skill out loud, and Weiss settled down, interested.

"That sounds… rather useful. Do you think you could advertise that as your semblance?" Weiss asked, taking her chair from the desk and spinning it around so she could sit in it and face her leader.

Jaune shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. RRYN's already seen a couple of my tricks, and I imagine Torchwick knows that I can fire bolts of what I assume he assumes are Aura, so I don't know. Maybe. We'll have to see what it looks like, though."

Weiss nodded in agreement. "If it's just a Ruby-esq boost of speed, we could pass it off as simple Aura enhancement, but if it's too fast, it'll seem impossible to achieve with just Aura, especially for a Hunter-in-training. Of course, if that's the case, we could pass it off as a semblance, but that would mean not being able to use something bigger as a semblance. You have such an advantage, and yet you can't use it. It must be frustrating."

Jaune shook his head in response to that. "I wouldn't say frustrating. I'm lucky to have this semblance in the first place, so even just having the chance to be a Huntsman is more than what I could've asked for. That's not to say I wouldn't appreciate being able to use it in full, though."

"Well, regardless, are we going to go test your new skill?" Weiss asked, already at the door.

Jaune stood from his bed with a quick stretch. "Absolutely."

* * *

 **Just as a note, I removed the skill** _ **Dual Mana Bolt**_ **due to it not having any feasible reason for existing. There were going to be Dual versions of all the spells, but considering the way it works it just doesn't serve any purpose other than inflate the skill list more than it already did. Granted, I had only filled out the details of** _ **Dual Mana Bolt**_ **but still. Also I'm reworking the method of skills upgrading with levels, so expect a couple changes in the future. V0.0.2 of the System is coming along nicely so far, though.**

 **Also, well wishes go out to our most popular fanfiction writer Couer Al'Aran and his family. Go spread some love on his fics if you haven't already.**

 **Alright, onto reviews!**

 **adislt: It's so Jaune has material to work with for crafting. I would have them drop already made gear, but it kind of defeats the purpose of quite a few things, including Crocea Mors.**

 **TypedSomeWords: Concerning fight tension, you are absolutely right. However, in this case, playing it off for humour was the best plan of action I had to make the chapter flow at least somewhat well. It also meant that this chapter Yang and Nora had some ammunition to use against our poor lanky teen. With all this power he keeps getting, he needs people to hold his ego back. And, maybe Salem is actually a pervy stalker and that was a major point of competitive relationship drama that you've just spoiled. Great, back to the drawing board I go :P**

 **Swiftwolfbeta: If you want a harem joke from a father, you're asking the wrong blond.**

 **Tristram Shandy: Ah, but they were in shock. And the chapter was already far too long. Seriously, if I were to add every little thing into the chapters instead of implying it, I'd be writing for decades.**

 **SentinalSlice: Shh, relationship teasing is hard. Jaune's probably going to save those skill points, but they will come up reasonably soon, at least within the events of Volume 2, canon-wise.**

 **Adro-Sama: Weekly chapters my dude, I couldn't give this up if I tried. I'd get lynched.**

 **Beeswax2: Jaune Arc, the One-Eyed King. Ooh, now I have more ideas. Oh shit, actually, that gave me a really neat idea that might get used. Hold on, let me write that down.**

 **armentho: As if the XP system wasn't flawed enough, passive XP farms? It technically doesn't matter what level Jaune is as the Grimm that spawn scale to his level. Something that people don't do, of course, but still. Also gear is going to become a thing sometime soon. A quick chat with Weiss, a quick chat with Ruby and a trip to Vale are coming soon, don't worry.**

 **Slenderbrine: One In The Chamber is now either a perk or a skill, haven't decided yet. Think Destiny 2's golden gun with Celestial Nighthawk.**

 **Pyrologicas: You're probably right concerning Emerald's semblance. However, not once did I specify who the watcher was. So it could've been. But was it?**

 **Guest: You're absolutely right in that a lot of Gamer Fics feature overpowered gamer systems. However, I made this one myself. It's as original as it can be, with numerous references to other things like the original Manghwa and traditional tabletop RPGs, but I did technically make it from scratch. And, as an important point, Jaune can and most likely will be overpowered. It'll just be overpowered with balance, which I know doesn't make all that much sense. For a single Huntsman, Jaune is incredibly strong. But even he can't stand against a horde alone, especially not considering the horde scales with him. All good RPGs have balance, my friend, and that's what I'm attempting to do.**

 **briskpillow642: I do believe I've mentioned it a couple times, but it never was a focus, and I can't remember what level any of those shown were. So, considering that, I'll do my best to mention it soon enough.**

 **RotWS: Ah, a wonderful excuse to advertise my Pa Treon, where you can get access to the Unholy Spreadsheet of Systema, which was created by my own three hands, with varying degrees on input (usually in the form of a new skill) from reviewers. Go check out Pa Treon AFatFlyingWhale to see the details.**

 **That about does it for reviews this week, I hope you all had a good one and enjoyed the chapter.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	20. Dust Is Dangerous, a PSA

**I'm not one hundred percent sure about this chapter, but I hope you all still enjoy it!**

* * *

"You had better be right, Roman. I don't appreciate being strung around."

Roman Torchwick did his best to not look nervous, covering his fear with a puff from his cigar, the soothing tobacco doing its best to work its way through his nerves.

Mistralian Grand cigars, of course. A tried and true brand of cigars hailing all the way from Mistral, if the name wasn't clear enough on that. One of Roman's favourites.

"Look, I'm just telling you what I saw. What it is or isn't is up to you to decide. But that kid, he flung something made of Aura at me, something powerful. He didn't have a gun, or Dust. That much I know for sure. Could be his semblance, could be something else. I don't know."

A sigh escaped the speaker of the Scroll he held in his hand.

"You had best be right, Torchwick. If it's something typical, I promise you I will not take kindly to being presented with a wild goose chase."

"Yeah, I know, you don't need to threaten me," Roman replied, taking another puff.

"I don't threaten, Roman. That was a promise. Am I understood?"

Roman sighed. "Yes, Cinder. I understand."

"Good. Send Emerald and Mercury my way, I have need of them. Is there anything else you neglected to report?"

"Aside from the White Fang rally being greenlit, not that I can think of."

There was no farewell from Cinder, the Scroll call hanging up with a beep.

Roman swore under his breath, dropping the cigar and stepping on it, stamping it out.

* * *

The clearing in the Emerald Forest that Jaune and his team used to experiment with his semblance had regrown slightly in their absence, something Jaune was all the ready to rectify.

He and Weiss stood in the center, Jaune giving the _Flash Step_ description another read, just to make sure he wouldn't accidentally do something foolish.

Well, most things he did were foolish, so maybe it was more apt to say he wouldn't do something _more_ foolish.

Or maybe even less foolish, considering his foolishness had led him this far-

"Can you please get on with it, Arc?"

"Oh, yeah, right," Jaune muttered, shaking himself from his thoughts.

He gave his legs a quick shake, readying the muscles, before he focused his Mana into them, as they began to glow light blue.

And he dashed forwards.

From his perspective, it looked as if he'd simply blinked and appeared about five feet in front of where he had been standing.

From Weiss's, it looked as if Jaune had turned into a bright blue blur, disappearing and reappearing within a split-second of the start and end of his dash.

Adrenaline flooded through his veins as he regained his bearings. "Woah, that's a little disorienting."

Weiss looked a little shell-shocked as Jaune gave his legs another shake.

"That… you rival Ruby for pure speed, at least over a short distance. That gives you a big advantage over a lot of fighters, especially considering your fighting style!" Weiss exclaimed, breaking loose of her shock.

Jaune turned to his teammate. "What, people don't expect me to go fast?"

"You fight with a sword and shield, Jaune, nobody expects you to be able to outmaneuver them. They expect you to take the hits for the team, to tank," Weiss answered.

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, I figured as much. But, at the moment, I don't have any armor. If I take a hit, it's going to hurt, more than normal."

"Well, we have nothing but time to sort that out, do we not? The Vytal Festival isn't until the later part of the semester," Weiss said. "And it isn't as if money is an issue."

Jaune shook his head in response to that. "I won't let you pay for my stuff, Weiss. I know you consider your money disposable, but I have my own, and I'd rather you use your money for your things. I can't imagine your Dust is very cheap at the moment, either."

"You do realise I get as much Dust as I want for free, right?"

Jaune did a double-take.

"Wait, for free? I assumed you just got a friends and family discount sort of thing."

"Jaune, I'm the heiress to the company. I practically own the Dust before it is purchased by the public."

At that, Jaune had an idea. "I've never tried Dust with my semblance. I have no idea what it does, to be honest. You up for some more experimenting?"

Weiss already had her Scroll out of her pocket, dialling a number. "Yes, this is Ms Schnee. I'm requesting a case of each Base Dust, half-crystal half-powder, delivered to my dorm at Beacon. Yes, I do have a good reason, and you'd best have a good reason for asking me that question. Ah, I see, the recent thefts. Of course. If my father asks? Tell him it is to assist in the stopping of the thefts. Yes, within the hour. Thank you."

Jaune stared at Weiss. "Are you sure?"

Weiss gave him a positively vicious smile. "I wasn't lying when I said it was to assist with stopping Torchwick."

"We're really going after him, huh?"

"I'm certain between the eight of us we're more than capable of taking down one thief."

Jaune shrugged his shoulders. "I guess we'll find out."

* * *

Exactly one hour, four minutes and thirty-six seconds later, the cart of Dust arrived at their dorm. Six cases, each labeled with the colour of Dust.

Blake and Pyrrha had returned at this point, too, staring interestedly as Weiss placed the cases on the desk, Jaune watching over her shoulder.

"Fire, Water, Air, Earth, Lightning, and Gravity. The six base Dust elements. Shall we see what you can do with them, Jaune?" Weiss asked, stepping back.

Jaune stared at the Dust, picking up an Air crystal and peering at it. "I'm going to level with you. I don't know all that much about Dust."

"Lucky you have me on your team, then, isn't it?" Weiss said, ego swelling.

"I guess I'll just _Observe_ it, see what I can discern," Jaune said, doing exactly that.

 **[Air Dust (Crystal)]**

 **[Air Dust, or Wind Dust depending on locale, is a bright white colour, and feels lighter than it actually weighs.]**

 **[Grade: I]**

"I mean, the description isn't wrong. It definitely feels lighter than it should," Jaune said once he finished reading it aloud.

"Weiss, what do you think would happen if I pushed Mana into this?" He asked.

Blake immediately backed up, and Pyrrha reached for her shield.

"I… haven't a clue. If it's anything like Aura, it would activate whatever effect the Dust might have. In this case, you'd create a giant tornado of wind inside the room. I'd appreciate if you didn't," Weiss replied, very delicately.

Jaune gave the crystal in his hand another stare. "So I shouldn't?"

"I'd strongly suggest against it."

Blake and Pyrrha voiced their agreement quickly.

"I'm… just wait here, I'm going to step outside for a moment." With that, Jaune opened the door and quickly walked out of the dorm, heading down the stairs and into the courtyard beneath their window.

Jaune could see his team peering through, and he shrugged his shoulders. And he willed Mana into the crystal.

The bright white crystal began to glow an even brighter white, and it slowly became coated in a film of light blue energy.

And then a burst of wind sent Jaune stumbling backwards, as all the leaves, grass and other plant matter in the courtyard was blown outwards.

 **[You've gained an Elemental Affinity!]**

 **[Affinity: Air I]**

When Jaune recovered from his impromptu head-over-heels trip into the dirt, he stared at the notification.

Jaune didn't know what that meant. An affinity? He wasn't sure what it entailed, and before he looked into it, he decided that the smart idea would be to climb back to his feet and head back to their room, instead of lying in the dirt for the next minute or two. Or longer.

So, Jaune did exactly that, standing and brushing the dirt off of him, walking his way back to the room. Once he arrived, he was assailed by questions.

"What happened?"

"Are you okay?"

"Why did you think that was a good idea?"

Blake, Pyrrha and Weiss asked at the same time, and Jaune took a second to register the three one at a time, before answering.

"I gained an elemental affinity, I'm fine, and I wasn't really thinking in that much detail. Besides, I chose the one that would hurt the least if it didn't work out. I can imagine it would've been worse if it was fire, or lightning," Jaune answered quickly, closing the door behind him once more.

There came a knock at the door before any of AWBN could continue. Jaune, being closest to it, opened it.

"Hey Ruby, what's up?" Jaune asked.

"What's up!? Seriously, Jaune!?" Ruby exclaimed. "I just watched you detonate into wind!"

Jaune scratched the back of his head. "Eh-heh, you saw that, huh?"

"I… I… Oh, nevermind!" Ruby said, storming off.

Jaune turned to the rest of his team with a confused look on his face. "Oops?"

"At this point, Jaune, is there even any point to hiding your semblance from RRYN? They've seen pretty much all you can do anyway," Blake mentioned, and Jaune pondered it for a moment.

"I'll consider it. I don't want to put them in any risk, especially not Ruby. She might be a fellow leader, but she's younger than the rest of us. I don't want to jeopardize anything more than I already have. We can leave that discussion for later, though, I want to find out about this affinity thing."

The door closed once again, and Jaune was considering purchasing one of those auto-closers, and he sat back down on his bed, opening his stats.

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Apprentice]**

 **[Level: 18]**

 **[XP: 65913/69984]**

 **[HP: 260/260 (1.3/s)]**

 **[SP: 260/260 (5.2/s)]**

 **[MP: 600/600 (6/s)]**

 **[AP: 2080/2080 (0.52/s)]**

 **[STR: 23]**

 **[END: 26]**

 **[AGI: 16]**

 **[INT: 30]**

 **[WIS: 30]**

 **[CHA: 16]**

 **[LCK: 12]**

 **[Skill Points: 35]**

 **[Lien: 3115]**

 **[Elemental Affinities]**

He knew these stats well, but the additional button was new, so he gave it a tap.

 **[Elemental Affinities]**

 **[Air I:** _You now possess an affinity for the element of Air. All skills and attacks using the element of Air gain +10% effectiveness._ **]**

Jaune read it aloud, noting that it was surprisingly satisfactory for how cheap the Dust had been. Well, it hadn't been cheap, but he hadn't had to pay for it, so it technically counted?

"Jaune, you just pushed Mana into the Dust Crystal, correct?" Weiss asked.

Jaune nodded in response. "Yeah. Though I could do without it detonating."

"Interesting that you gained an affinity at, what would you call it, tier one?" Weiss continued, and Jaune nodded again.

"Yeah, tier works. It could be called level, or grade, I guess, but tier fits."

Weiss turned back to the rest of the Dust, mulling over it for a moment. "Interesting you mention grade. That Wind Dust was Grade I for quality, correct?"

Jaune, following the pattern he seemed to have set, nodded again.

"By that logic, it would appear the higher the grade, the higher your affinity. That's a guess, an estimate based in assumption, but it does hold some sway," Weiss thought out loud.

Jaune agreed. "Look, Weiss, you're our expert in Dust, so I'm going to take your word for it. If that's what you think, that's probably right."

Weiss's ego sated, Jaune turned to the rest of his team. "So, now what? Should I absorb the rest of the Dust, or just leave it?"

Blake looked to be stuck in thought, and Pyrrha seemed much the same, though the latter was first to answer.

"Jaune, if what you say is true and we are going after the White Fang and Torchwick, we're going to need all the help we can get. It may hurt, but I believe you should gain the affinities. They can only help, or so it would seem," Pyrrha said, after considering for a moment.

Blake didn't respond verbally, just nodding along in agreement to Pyrrha.

"I believe you should do it as well, Jaune. Just, perhaps somewhere not so public. We may be able to find an empty training hall," Weiss said, bringing up her scroll and navigating through something on it.

Jaune waited for half a second before Weiss spoke again. "Yes, here. Hall fourteen is free for the next few hours, and barely anybody uses it as is. I've rented it out under AWBN's name."

"Alright, thanks Weiss. C'mon team, let's go get some training done while we watch me explode again."

* * *

Training Hall Fourteen was much like Training Hall Thirteen, which in turn was much like Training Hall Twelve, and so on and so forth.

Unlike the Professor Goodwitch's classroom, it did not feature a stadium-esq setup of chairs for spectators, instead it was more accurate to say there were a few metal benches surrounding the concrete tile sparring ring, and that was about it.

It looked barren, felt barren, and gave Jaune the confidence he needed to feel as if there were no unwanted spectators.

"Alright, so, what's first?" Jaune asked, as he held out a hand, palm up.

Weiss said nothing, simply placing a Fire Dust crystal in his hand and then backing away to join Pyrrha and Blake, who were on the other side of the Training Hall, presenting minimal targets in case the explosion reached them.

"Wow, thanks guys. I can always count on you to stand up for me," Jaune remarked dryly, as he grasped the crystal between his hands.

A moment passed as he focused Mana into the crystal, and then, with a sudden plume of orange flame, Jaune was engulfed in a fiery inferno.

"Argh! It burns! I don't know what I expected!" Jaune exclaimed, rolling on the floor in an attempt to put himself out.

It didn't go out. In fact, it was as if his very flesh was made of pitch.

"Jaune, try this one!" Weiss shouted, tossing another crystal towards him.

Even with the flames licking at his flesh and rapidly decreasing his Aura levels, Jaune managed to catch the crystal, not even caring to look at it, simply willing Mana to flow into it.

Suddenly, the flames were snuffed out of existence as Jaune felt himself soaked to the very core in a torrential wave of water, threatening to push and pull him every which way.

Unlike the fire, however, the water seemed to stop rather quickly, leaving Training Hall Fourteen Beacon's newest water feature, puddles coating the concrete surfaces all over.

Jaune shook himself dry, marveling that his uniform was only charred and not completely burned off, though it was now very soggy.

On the other side of the hall, Blake, Weiss and Pyrrha were also shaking themselves dry, impressed that the water had even reached this far, though Blake wore an expression of disgust.

"Are you alright, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked, and Jaune, unable to really voice his feelings, simply gave his partner a shaky thumbs-up.

Weiss quickly paced up, avoiding the deeper of the puddles, and placed a yellow crystal into his hand. "Halfway done, Jaune."

Jaune gave himself a quick shake of his muscles to loosen them, grasped the yellow crystal between his hands, and once again focused Mana into it.

A moment passed, and Jaune was struck by a sudden epiphany. Weiss knew all about Dust. That meant that she knew what kind of Dust this was. So why didn't she say-

The lightning that flowed through his very veins made his body twitch, twist and shudder in agony as every single muscle in his body contracted and extended at the same time, causing him to look like some kind of haunted marionette.

Amidst his startled gargling, Weiss swore she could hear Jaune say "Why!?", but she wrote it off as a quirk of the environment, or some other unexplainable phenomena.

It stopped just as suddenly as it started, leaving Jaune in a steaming crater of electrolyzed water.

"Oww…" Came the moan from the blond almost-corpse.

"Jaune, are you alright?" Pyrrha asked again.

"Pyr, maybe it's best if you save that question until we're done. If Weiss has her way, I'm going to be in pain a couple more times," Jaune moaned from the puddle.

Pyrrha gave Weiss a look, and Weiss just did her best to look innocent. So what if she was giving Jaune the more painful combinations. They were all going to hurt, and it was his decision. Was she using his pain at the hands of her Dust as a not-so-subtle way of getting back at him for multiple reasons?

Yes, she was.

Was she going to regret that decision?

Probably not.

So, in Weiss's mind, it was a perfectly acceptable trade.

Of course, all that was left was Earth and Gravity.

"Jaune, which would you prefer? Left, or right?" Weiss asked.

Jaune didn't even lift his head. "Eenie Meenie Miney Mo…" The blond sung to himself, before going silent. "Left!"

Weiss placed the one in her right hand in Jaune's outstretched palm.

Jaune didn't even look at it, simply lying on the ground and focusing Mana into it.

Weiss only just made it back to the rest of AWBN as a vortex of purple swirling energy enveloped Jaune, lifting him until he was floating in the middle of the room.

"Hey, this one isn't so bad!" Jaune exclaimed, now floating about fifteen feet about the concrete tiling that was the floor of the hall.

"Give it a moment, Arc," Weiss muttered, and Blake stifled a laugh.

The purple energy cut out, and Jaune fell nearly eighteen feet, where he landed face-first into the ground with a dull thud and a moan.

"I know that I only feel pain for a moment, and that I can heal from injuries incredibly quickly, but it still does hurt!" Jaune groaned again from the ground.

"One last one to go, Arc!" Weiss called out, walking forward and placing it in his hand.

This time, Jaune did look at it, staring in awe at how uniform the green colour was. "Well, might as well get it over and done with."

Jaune once again, hopefully for the final time, focused Mana into his hand, pouring it into the crystal.

It wasn't as sudden as the rest of the Dust. This one was slow, methodical.

Or at least it was, until the rumbling underneath the floor reached a point where it was almost deafening, and then Jaune was launched into the air as the concrete tiles buckled and cracked, tendrils of stone and brick pinning him to the ceiling.

The dust that had been kicked up cleared within a few moments once the rumbling stopped, and the three female members of AWBN stared as Jaune struggled to free himself from the roof of the hall, four stone tendrils having trapped him, one for each limb.

After some time, Jaune called down to his team. "Some help!?"

* * *

After the combined efforts of Blake and Pyrrha, with Weiss using her glyphs to give them a platform to stand on, Jaune was finally freed from the earthen prison that he'd summarily been subjected to.

His wrists and ankles, where he'd been pinned, still ached, but it was more apt to say it was a phantom pain leftover, as no actual injuries had been left from his healing. _System Body_ was not infallible, something he'd learned time and time again.

"Whatever I did, I'm sorry," Jaune muttered, rubbing at his wrist as he brought up the new notifications.

 **[You've gained Elemental Affinities!]**

 **[Affinity: Fire I]**

 **[Affinity: Water I]**

 **[Affinity: Lightning I]**

 **[Affinity: Gravity I]**

 **[Affinity: Earth I]**

"Well, at least I don't have to do that again," Jaune said, doing his best to ignore what was basically phantom chafing on his ankles.

"Now that you are finished, Jaune, are you alright?" Pyrrha asked, a small smile on her face.

"Yes, Pyrrha, I'm fine now. No thanks to you, Weiss," Jaune said with a glare.

Weiss looked almost offended at his suggestion. "I have no idea what you are talking about, Arc."

Jaune maintained his glare. "Oh, I'm sure. So, we've got the training hall for a little while longer. Wanna go all out?"

Pyrrha, Blake and Weiss all drew their weapons.

"You do have a significant advantage over us, Jaune. Think you can take on all three of us?" Pyrrha asked.

Jaune shook his head frantically. "Gods no I don't!"

Blake smirked at his response. "Too bad."

* * *

Jaune was running away from his team.

This was a fair thing to do, he thought.

Running away was a perfectly acceptable strategy when faced with overwhelming odds.

And then Jaune felt something tug on his weapons.

"No! No no no no!" Jaune shouted as Crocea Mors and his shielth were enveloped in a black aura, slowing him down.

Jaune had two options. A, he could drop his weapons and keep running. Jaune had faith that he could outrun his team for a long time. B, he could turn and fight.

Jaune didn't like either option all that much. ' _Is there a C?'_

It appeared there was, and that was to maintain his pace, pushing his very limits to beyond breaking point in order to maintain his speed.

When he turned to see the four pursuing him still, he realised that this wasn't going to work in the long run.

And, now that he noticed it, the five were gaining. It was slow and steady, but it was still a gain. The six of them would overrun him soon enough.

Jaune shrugged his shoulders and decided to bite the bullet and try his hardest. He turned to face the seven, feet sliding as he gained traction from his sudden stop.

Then Jaune noticed something he really should've noticed a little earlier.

RRYN were no more tired than they had been before the food fight. They were also alongside the WBN part of AWBN, what could technically be called bloodthirsty expressions on their faces.

And this time, they had their weapons.

Jaune gulped loudly.

"Oh."

* * *

Darkness.

She liked to think she enjoyed the darkness, but she knew that she was just using that as an excuse. She didn't like the darkness anymore than any other person, any other thing, but it was her home.

One had to like their home, did they not?

The occasional bursts of light, the flashes, the sparks, they broke up the monotony of the darkness, she supposed, but they were sparse, few and far between, and never for long.

Her blade had dulled years ago, but her mind, her wit, that was as sharp as any knife, as any sword.

It was a prison.

It wasn't a home, it was a prison.

She felt as if she needed to repeat that as if it were a mantra to prevent her from going insane.

Only the images she could remember, those near-forgotten memories that lingered in her mind prevented her from losing touch with whatever reality that was left for her to intermingle with.

Fleeting memories, too. They appeared and disappeared with such ease one would think they were fluid.

Blond, brown, black tipped red. Red, blue, lilac, silver. Eyes that shone with youthful exuberance. Eyes dulled by years of hardened combat.

A man had once said that the eyes were the window to the soul, and she would remind herself of that many a time.

Her eyes, she'd forgotten what they looked like. The others, though. She couldn't forget those. Never.

No matter how hard she tried to forget, no matter how hard she tried to remember.

She would never forget.

Nor would she remember.

Darkness.

* * *

 **So... subtle foreshadowing is definitely subtle. Nothing about that was unsubtle at all, not a bit.**

 **Anyway, V0.0.2 of the System is still undergoing development and will most likely be implemented for the next chapter, it does take some time to design certain elements of it, but I'm pushing my way through when I have free time. I should probably update my Author Page too, come to think of it. Huh.**

 **Anyway, onto reviews!**

 **seem14: I mean, from what we've seen of Ozpin in the past few episodes of Volume 6, it's pretty much understandable that Ozpin would at least be tangentially aware of it. That doesn't mean he knows everything about it, though, he just has a bit of experience with it. A little more than Jaune, a lot less in the grand scheme of things. The System is known** _of_ **, not necessarily known.**

 **RotWS: Ah, the problems with the naming schemes. Ah well, I'll play it up as an entertaining joke. That'll be fun.**

 **Adro-Sama: That is planned to happen soon enough, though not in that sort of direct context. Besides, technically Jaune has more options for mobility than just speed.**

 **Ittehgaps: Speed-wise, it should be determinable from this chapter if you can do the math, but I will go into that later. As for pairings, I do have plans I have previously mentioned, and I'm sorry to say it won't be Knightshade or White Knight. Maybe some other time I'll write that, when I have more experience. Mallobaude has a great White Knight story, and I'm certain everyone knows the best Knightshade writer on the site. Even when Couer isn't writing Knightshade it's Knightshade :P**

 **Reaper4425: Oh, you just wait. Early-canon Broadsword here we come!**

 **TypedSomeWords: If I had a dollar for every time my parents reminded me not to mimic food I would probably have like, half a dollar. Maybe less. I'm glad the mixed teams seem to be working, even if this chapter I'm less happy with the dynamics, and as for P-money, I have no idea where that came from. I've seen it in plenty of fics, and I assume it's just a running joke at this point. Meta-Yang coming in handy for the bad humour. Flash Step is currently a recast, but it may get nerfed in V0.0.2, as right now it's a little OP.**

 **Slenderbrine: As always, you have the memes that this story needs. If only the chapter titles were long enough. Alternate title was 'From the Baguette-Go', which wasn't any better.**

 **HSPrinceOfSpace: He can't. Well, not quite. I'm working an idea around in my head for that. Maybe potential Alternate Fic territory. After Systema is finished maybe.**

 **Skeletickles: Aw, that's a shame. I know you aren't reading this, but it was less of an arrogant statement concerning the status of Gamer fics on this site and more of a commentary on my inability to write convincing plots, as evident by my prior fics, but that's not as clear as it should be. It was nice of you to read whatever part you did, though!**

 **DarkSolaris57: You don't have to worry about that, baby. No parties here, I'm a straight-laced guy, and I agree with you.**

 **nanasekarina: By popular consensus, Skill Points have been renamed to Stat Points in V0.0.2. Thanks for your input!**

 **Xerzo LotCN: Wow, there's a lot to unpack here. Hoo boy. I'm not going to have an argument about the quality of writing from Volume 3 onwards, because all in all I've enjoyed it. But, that's not my point. This is AU. Heavily. Not right now, granted, but it will be pretty damn AU. Things may seem canon-esq right now, but it's going to get different. I won't say anymore on that so as not to spoil anything. Your suggestion for a cover story for his semblance is pretty good, actually, I may use it, and I'm pretty sure Neo's semblance doesn't affect minds so much as physical perception of reality. It won't be a Harem, so if that puts you off that's too bad, but I'm not confident I can realistically write a relationship, let alone multiple, so that'll stay off the table for now. I won't cross it off completely, because I enjoy remaining open to all sorts of content, but not for Systema. There are going to be straight, gay and lesbian relationships, though, because I enjoy almost all the pairings. Realistic relationships, though. Commonality is important, or so I'm told. Thanks for leaving a review though!**

 **Whoo, okay, might've gone a little overboard this week. Hey, though, on a completely different note, I have a Pa Treon, check it out if you feel like supporting me!**

 **Hope you enjoyed and, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	21. Seven v One Fights Are Hard

**As an apology for the slightly lesser quality of the previous chapter, of which I wasn't all that happy with, have a double-lengther this week!**

* * *

 **[The System has updated to Version 0.0.2!]**

 **[New Changes!]**

 **[Skill** _ **Dual Mana Bolt**_ **has been removed.]**

 **[Skill** _ **Dual Cast**_ **is available for creation.]**

 **[Skill Points have been renamed to Stat Points.]**

 **[Loot drops from enemies have been reworked, chances for loot have been increased.]**

 **[Skill upgrades per level have been reworked! Some prior skill upgrades may have changed.]**

' _Now certainly isn't the time to update!'_ Jaune thought as seven of his closest friends approached him, weapons sheathed, their expressions varying from mild amusement to downright savage humor.

"N-now, I'm warning you all. I won't go easy!" Jaune stammered, backing up pace by pace as they advanced in kind.

Pyrrha was the first to respond. "We've agreed that it's seven on one, but we won't use our semblances. So, partner, think you can handle it?"

Jaune half-considered shaking his head with violent fervour just to communicate that no, he didn't think he could handle it, not even remotely, but another notification popped up to indicate that he should reconsider choosing that option.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Pain Training**_ **]**

 **[Fight against all seven of your closest friends in what could technically be called an unfair fight.]**

 **[Rewards: 25000 Encounter XP, Skill Book]**

Jaune reconsidered. Sparring with his team and RRYN was going to be difficult, and very painful, but according to the quest, he didn't have to win.

He just had to fight.

Well, struggle, but that was a form of fighting. Technically.

"Well, I won't win… but I'm going to give it a try!" Jaune shouted, darting towards the group, Crocea Mors drawn and shining in the artificial light.

Pyrrha stepped up to meet him as the rest scattered, ranged weapons raising to spray at him.

 _Mana Field_ was cast as he pushed forwards, maintaining a barrier of Mana as rounds splayed off it.

Pyrrha met him head on, xiphos flashing out towards him only to impact against the _Mana Field_ , and Jaune smirked as Pyrrha darted back out of his reach.

 _Mana Field_ deactivated as Jaune willed it, and his shield went up, blocking the incoming fire as Pyrrha avoided a _Mana Slash_ that dug into the tiles just in front of her, missing by a hair.

Pyrrha was fast, though. Not Ruby level, but as agile as any fighter Jaune had ever seen. She seemed to simply sway and dodge any attack he threw her way.

That didn't mean she was infallible, of course, it just meant she was hard to hit with direct attacks. Jaune wasn't only equipped with direct attacks.

His aura was slowly but steadily getting chipped away at as rounds splintered off his uncovered calves, but it wasn't enough to dent his step as he made a _Jump_ , launching himself up and into the air.

Yang launched herself up to meet him, fist cocked back, and Jaune quickly placed his shield in the way as her fist impacted.

It launched him further, but that wasn't that problematic as his boots pressed against one of the stone tendrils.

He focused Mana into the soles of his feet, focusing, creating a skill.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Surface Walk (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can focus Mana into the soles of your feet in order to stick to surfaces like walls or ceilings. Costs 2 MP/s._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

All seven of his friends stared as Jaune stared back, standing horizontally on the stone tendril that stuck up from the concrete tile.

"Huh… I didn't expect that to work," Jaune said with a laugh, as he sheathed his blade in the top of his shield.

Now with a free hand, he took advantage of the distraction he'd accidentally caused, pointing his fingers in the approximation of a gun and casting _Spinning Mana Bullet_.

When the four orbs appeared, floating around at his fingertips, he released them, targeting his friends.

The spinning Mana orbs pierced the sound barrier as they shot through the air, carving their way towards WBN and RRYN.

The seven weren't willing to get taken down from a simple trick, though, and Yang and Nora quickly rushed in, winding back and delivering powerful blows to the base of the tendril while the others quickly dodged or blocked the magical projectiles.

Jaune felt what was technically the floor, at least from his perspective, shake and shudder, and he could see cracks spider-webbing up towards where he was affixed.

"Oh," Jaune muttered, as the tendril shuddered and collapsed under its own weight, Jaune still standing on one particular chunk as it fell.

 _System Mind_ nullified the nausea of effectively standing on an orbiting chunk of rock before Jaune leaped off with a _Jump_ , launching himself away from his opponents and tucking into a roll as he landed.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Rolling Recovery (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can recover from being launched with a roll in the direction you have been launched, absorbing the majority of the damage you would take from the impact. Costs 20 SP._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

More skills were always a plus in Jaune's mind, but they were the last thing he was particularly paying attention to as his friends were already pushing their way through the earthen shrapnel that had splintered around.

There was enough ruined stone to provide cover for both him and his opponents, and Jaune considered using it to his advantage, but his plan was soon null and void as the two heaviest hitters of the first year of Beacon were already pushing their way towards him, weapons at the ready, grins on their faces. The two teammates shared many similarities, it seemed.

Crocea Mors was still sheathed in Jaune's shield, and he didn't have time to draw it as Yang and Nora struck as one, hammer and fist hitting his hastily moved shield, the metal ringing like a gong as he was forced backwards.

Jaune wasn't about to back down without a fight, and his Aura was still holding, and so he recovered, extending a hand and casting _Mana Blast_ , knocking Yang and Nora back, but Blake was fast to wrap her ribbon around his wrist and tug him backwards, in reach of Ruby, whose scythe arced towards him with incredible speed.

His shield arm was still free, however, and Jaune caught the blade on it, the poor shield taking another ringing blow and making Jaune wince as his arm felt as if it had shattered.

 _System Body_ healed the injury within moments, but Blake still had his free arm tangled, and she decided it was more apt to fling him like a flail into all his friends from her position atop one of the taller rocks.

Every time he passed near someone they would attempt to strike, and Jaune tried his hardest to block, but it was starting to become too much, and all the while he tried to free himself, he couldn't both block and loose himself at the same time.

So, Jaune tried something. A _Mana Disc_ appeared in his hand, and he bent his wrist, using the razor sharp edge of the _Mana Disc_ to cut through the ribbon as he blocked a piercing blow from Weiss.

The ribbon cut soon after, and Jaune found himself stumbling head over heels as he half-slid half-rolled across the floor, thudding into a chunk of rock.

 _Rolling Recovery_ got some more use as he rolled up and over the slanted stone, and right into Ren's blades, the monk-like teen slashing downwards with an incredible amount of power and speed for someone so lithe, and Jaune didn't have time, nor the right angle, to block it, so the twin blades struck him in the chest, knocking a decent chunk of Aura from his body.

He uttered a grunt of pain, though the injury was rapidly healed, and he pushed forward, a _Shield Bash_ serving to push Ren back somewhat, but Ruby was already behind him, moving almost faster than he could see, and he threw the _Mana Disc_ he still held in his hand at her.

It missed, as expected, as Ruby simply angled her approach slightly, and Jaune didn't have the time to do anything but cast _Mana Shield_ and angle it towards her as his actual shield took the brunt of Ren's attack.

Ruby's scythe impacted against the plane of Mana and it shattered with a high-pitched sound like glass being thrown against the ground, but it had served its purpose in slowing her attack down to the point where it hit Jaune with barely a tenth of the force it had had to begin with.

It was still enough to chip his Aura and send him sideways, but he managed to stay standing as he recovered.

He had only a few moments of space, but in the distance he could see the seven swarming towards him, weapons at the ready.

Jaune readied himself, drawing Crocea Mors once again as he smiled slightly, watching as the _Mana Disc_ was heading back for him.

Of course, it appeared Weiss was going to reach him first as a trail of glyphs appeared on the ground, the girl using them to boost her speed and momentum, practically skating over them towards him, Myrtenaster's tip angled towards his chest.

He cast _Haste_ and _Enduring_ before bracing for impact as his AGI and END were boosted, giving him a faster reaction time, and making him able to tank the hit with more ease, the pointed tip of Weiss's blade skittering off the side of his shield and leaving her open to a retaliatory strike, or it would in theory if she hadn't created yet another glyph underneath her feet, launching her into an assisted backflip.

Jaune recognized the specifics of her technique, and with his boosted reactions he had just enough time and wherewithal to sway to the side as Blake's kusarigama sliced it's way through the air where his head had been moments before.

He expected it from their team training, so it hadn't caught him off guard, but what did catch him off guard was Yang flying towards him with incredible speed, having used Pyrrha as a kind of launchpad to give her a little extra momentum.

He couldn't stay still, and he couldn't move fast enough to evade the attack, as off balance as he was, so he sheathed his sword and waited as a surprised Yang felt a razor-sharp impact against her back, distracting her.

Jaune used the distraction of the _Mana Disc_ hitting the blonde to _Jump_ over her, sailing into the air as he put a little Aura into it, and he released a charged _Mana Pulse_ at the ground where she landed, the explosion doing nothing significant aside from really pissing the blonde off, which she made very vocal.

Jaune didn't have time to worry about that however, as he noticed Nora leaping off one of Weiss's solid glyphs, winding back with a heavy swing, an expression of glee on her face.

Jaune had enough time to spare a glance at his Aura meter, sitting at eleven hundred, and he winced as he cast _Mana Shield_ and maneuvered it in front of his shield, both arms holding the defensive metal plate in front of him as her hammer hit.

The explosion that released was enough to blow his hair back as shards of shattered Mana cascaded through the air, and he had enough time whilst airborne to note that the strike had quartered his leftover Aura.

What dealt the final, decisive blow was his back impacting against wall, giving him reason to gasp in pain as he felt his Aura shatter along with his spine, which quickly began healing.

"Ow…" Jaune moaned as he lay slumped on the ground. "You win…"

He conceded defeat then and there, and after a moment he felt his spine fully healed, and he took the hand of the sole male of RRYN as Ren offered it, the seven having closed the distance with expressions of glee to worry coating most of their faces.

His Aura flickered as it regenerated, before it was once again transparent as usual, and he let out a laugh.

"Good fight, I guess. Who'd've thought it would take seven of you to defeat me," He joked, rubbing his shield arm as he placed the now-sheath, blade inside, on his belt.

"Are you okay? We didn't hit you too hard, did you?" Ruby asked, and Jaune shook his head.

"I'm fine, now, but I didn't realise I was such a threat that you needed to use your semblances."

There was a cacophony of silent, bashful expressions.

"You forgot, didn't you," Jaune commented, deadpan.

His right arm came up and caught the _Mana Disc_ that had once again bounced off a wall, and the seven all gave a slight, almost imperceptible jump.

"It's fine, I don't really mind. You got caught up in the heat of the moment, and forgot about the rules we set. It happens, don't worry. It was fun regardless," Jaune said as he dismissed the _Mana Disc_ , the blue circle fading out of reality with the sound of dropped crystal.

"Sorry, Jaune," Ruby apologised, and quickly the others followed suit with their own forms of apologies.

"Nah, it's cool. Come on, let's get out of here before Goodwitch discovers we've ruined another room on campus today."

At the thought, the eight members of Auburn Rain, the unofficial name of their group that had been floating around the student body, quickly made their way out of the training hall, doing their best to be anywhere but the aftermath of the mess they had made.

Professor Goodwitch was in for one hell of an afternoon, and none of them wanted to be anywhere near her when she found out.

* * *

The training session hadn't given him any XP, but the quest had, and it appeared that the 25k XP he'd gained counted towards his skills, but Jaune was more focused on the skill book he'd acquired from the quest. That he'd also hit level 19 was a nice bonus, but it really was the book he was most interested in.

'Remnant's Aura: Theoretical Science' seemed like a dry read, but it was a skill book nonetheless, and Jaune was determined to read it. He didn't know what skill it was going to give, and he was interested.

He'd found an empty courtyard, somewhere away from the typical thoroughfare of Beacon's campus, and pulled up a seat underneath the cloud-covered sky, barest hints of sunlight shining through, providing plenty of illumination for the late afternoon.

The entire book, surprisingly, was empty, blank page after blank page, and Jaune found himself suddenly without anything to do aside from consume the book.

A little bit disappointed, he hit accept on the prompt, and watched as the book began to glow, motes of blue light dispersing in the air as he gained a new skill.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Soul Harvest (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can withdraw ambient Aura from the atmosphere to create Soul Orbs of varying quality._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

 **[A new feature has been added: Ambient Aura Meter.]**

' _Huh, a new feature? That's a first from a skill book,'_ Jaune thought as he read through the notifications.

According to the skill, he could harvest Ambient Aura, whatever that was, into some kind of Orb?

Jaune wasn't one hundred percent sure what that meant, but the word 'soul' reminded him of a few things that he was yet to do.

There wasn't a rule against having multiple summons, was there?

Jaune stood from the seat with a confused but satisfied feeling. Sure, he was expanding his arsenal, but with things he didn't understand, and he knew that they were under-leveled.

He'd have to fix that.

First, however, was the new feature.

As he walked, he kept an eye on the new addition to what could technically be called a UI, the small golden circle about half-full of a white glowing liquid.

As he moved out of Beacon's campus and down to the Emerald Forest where he liked to spend his time, he noticed the liquid seemed to lower, now only a third full at best.

"So, Beacon's got a lot of Ambient Aura, and the Emerald Forest doesn't… huh," Jaune said to himself, pondering the concept.

Information to be kept in mind, he assumed. Now, he had to figure out _Soul Harvest_.

His semblance gave him an innate understanding of how to use each skill, but sometimes the descriptions were less than helpful when it concerned certain effects. Like what a Soul Orb was, or what it did.

He did know to stretch his hand out and concentrate, and soon the golden-white glow of Aura congealed in his hand.

It shared a similar colouring to his own Aura, but it felt foreign, different. This was not his Aura.

A glance at the Ambient Aura Meter indicated that the glowing white liquid had not decreased in volume, but he continued at it.

It took a couple minutes at least of Jaune standing there, hand glowing like a beacon, before the skill finished.

 **[You have created a Soul Orb of Minor quality!]**

His semblance notified him, and he read through it before looking at the Soul Orb.

It reminded him of a seer's glass ball, but instead of vague mystical energy inside it, it glowed a brilliant white and gold, swirling around.

It was warm to the touch, too, and seemed to pulse with his own heartbeat, the rhythmic thudding a surprising comfort.

He opened his inventory and quickly placed it in, and the feeling of warmth receded, leaving his arm at its normal temperature, though the feeling faded quickly.

' _So, that's what Soul Harvest does. I don't know how useful a Soul Orb is, but whatever it's used for, at least I have a way of getting them now,'_ Jaune thought, as he flexed his fingers, whatever warmth was left dissipating quickly.

Jaune had a few other errands he was planning on running before he was planning on heading to Vale, to see about doing some evening shopping. Three thousand Lien was a nice bit of cash, and he needed new clothes and armor. He'd been feeling a little under-dressed, and his recent exposure to better dressed, vibrant Hunters was indicative that his choice of wear wasn't exactly combat gear.

Also, his other exposure, but that more showed that his clothing was nowhere near the Hunter standard of wear and tear resistance.

Jaune still had his inventory open, and he reached in and grabbed one of the drops he'd gotten a while back at this point, having not done anything with it still. He had so many things to do, and so little time between classes.

The Alpha Beowolf Claw was large, about the size of a large knife, and by no means unwieldy, but Jaune wasn't planning on using it as a weapon.

No, the Soul Orb had reminded him of another Soul-based skill he had access to.

The tip of Jaune's index finger began to glow as he traced a pattern into the dirt, one he was starting to become familiar with, and once he finished, he placed the Alpha Beowolf Claw in the center, stepping back.

 **[Error in Summoning Ritual! Missing component: Minor Soul Orb!]**

Jaune stared at the message, before letting out a laugh. "Well, that answers my previous questions, I guess."

He withdrew the Soul Orb from his inventory and placed it next to the Alpha Beowolf Claw, before once again stepping back and initiating the ritual.

Like the time he had summoned Alcmena for the first time, Jaune and the pattern he had traced began to glow as the ritual began, the items floating into the air, surrounded by the spiralling pattern of magical energy that orbited around at ever-increasing speed.

The ritual finished soon after it began with the telltale flash of white light, and as Jaune blinked away to regain his eyesight, he heard a bark that was both similar and different to that of a Beowolf.

It appeared that there were a few differences between a Beowolf and what he had summoned.

 **[Summoning Ritual was a success!]**

 **[You have summoned a Beowolf Soul!]**

Jaune eyed the summon, using _Observe_.

 **[Beowolf Soul, Minor]**

 **[Bound Soul, Grimm]**

The summon looked almost like a regular wolf, four-legged and covered in black fur with a gold patch on its back. Its head was bare of bone plating, but its legs were not, the joints armored. Bright blue eyes stared into his own, the Arc family insignia in golden fur on the Bound Soul's forehead.

It's tongue lolled out the side of its mouth, looking the part of a normal pet, but Jaune could see the sharpened fangs and claws the summon had.

"Good boy?" Jaune offered, as it padded towards him. He reached out with one hand and the Bound Soul pushed its head into it, enjoying the contact.

"Now, what do I name you?" Jaune asked the summon, scratching behind its ears as it panted happily, tail wagging.

Jaune cast his mind back as far as he could remember, and it stumbled across an old memory.

A storyteller from out of town had visited the village when he was about six or seven, as far as he could remember, and had told many a story to the children of Domremy.

One story stood out if only for the name of the creature. He couldn't remember any of the details, but he knew that name.

And, as far as he was aware, it fit rather well.

"Good boy, Cadejo. Now, what can you do?"

* * *

Jaune was sat up against a overturned log, Cadejo laid out next to him, head in Jaune's lap.

Jaune stroked the wolf-summon's head slowly as he read the notifications he'd been given.

 **[You've unlocked a new Perk!]**

 **[Wolfpack:** _Your connection with the soul of a Beowolf allows you to summon a pack of wolves to fight alongside your Bound Beowolf Soul._ **]**

 **[A title has ranked up!]**

 **[You are now a Tamer Novice!]**

According to the notification and the title description, which he gave a cursory glance, it meant that his Bound Souls would do more and be able to take more damage. That was always a good thing, Jaune supposed, though he would have to unequip his Apprentice Hunter title in order to make good use of it.

Alcmena gave a chirp as she nestled down into the hood of his hoodie, neck stretching out to where Jaune could see her head, and his free hand reached out to give the bird a scratch under the chin.

Jaune was happy to sit there for a little longer, enjoying the company of what were basically his pets, but his scroll vibrated, indicating he'd gotten a message.

Cadejo's ears perked at the sound, and Jaune lifted his hand from the black wolf's head to reach into his pocket and withdraw the offending device, giving the screen a glance.

 _Jaune, I'm headed out into Vale to pick up some supplies for Crescent Rose. You weren't in your dorm, so I figured I'd send you a message, give you a heads-up. Wanna come with?_

Jaune smiled as he typed an answer to his fellow team leader.

 _Sure thing, let me get back to campus real quick, I was just down in the Emerald Forest doing some training. Be there soon._

"Up we get Cadejo, Alcmena. Come on, I might introduce you to Ruby."

The wolf stood and let out a silent yawn, and Alcmena gave her wings a preliminary flap.

Jaune set about heading back to Beacon's campus, and as Alcmena took flight and Cadejo began a run, the two summons faded into black mist, as Jaune dismissed them.

"Now, for the worst part, climbing. I should ask the Headmaster to see about making a set of stairs."

* * *

Jaune jogged up to the red-cloaked figure that stood lingering around Beacon's shuttle bay, giving the girl a wave.

"Hey, Ruby!" Jaune greeted.

Ruby waved back in greeting. "Hey Jaune!"

Jaune reached the shorter girl quickly, slowing his pace down so that the two could walk aside each other onto the awaiting airship, scheduled to depart in only a few moments. Jaune had been cutting it close.

"So, what're you getting in Vale?" Jaune asked, making conversation.

The two took their seats as the craft began the trip, and Ruby replied. "Just restocking on ammo and spare parts for the semester, you know how it is. I go through a lot of ammo."

Jaune laughed. "I can imagine. Sometimes having only a sword and shield has its benefits."

"Yeah, but there are so many things you could add to make your sword better! You could add a gun like an SMG, like Blake's, or you could mount a shotgun into the shield, or make the blade a Dust blade…" Ruby began.

"Woah there, Ruby. Let's not get carried away. The shield might not be anything special, and that shotgun idea isn't a bad one, but I can't really modify Crocea Mors. It's an heirloom, it's way too important to my family to just up and change the whole thing. Besides, it never goes dull, and can't break. This thing's older than my Dad, and it has never been sharpened," Jaune said, doing his best to distract Ruby from going off on a massive tangent about various weapon modifications.

"Wow, that's pretty cool. I wonder what kind of metal it is," Ruby said. "But, I do think that a shotgun in your shield would be a good idea. You never know when you might need a close-quarters bashing weapon that hits a little harder than you do at the moment, and you could always load it with twelve-gauge slugs if you wanted a little range."

Jaune's mind conjured up the image of a buckshot assisted _Shield Bash_ , and he found himself grinning at the prospect. "That… maybe when I have some spare cash. I'm not exactly flush at the moment."

Ruby nodded morosely. "I know that feeling. Our Beacon stipend is almost completely used on ammunition and Dust, and trust me, RRYN burns through ammo like no other first year team. Ren's guns are 9mm, so they aren't too expensive, and neither are Yang's double-ought buckshot, but as for Nora and I, well, we're pretty big on the whole large caliber thing. .50 BMG and 20mm grenades aren't cheap, and Nora and I use them pretty often."

Jaune agreed wholeheartedly. "Yeah, I know the feeling. I assume Blake and Ren use the same caliber, and Weiss doesn't use ammo, but Pyrrha's .308 rounds aren't cheap either. Granted, Weiss has access to all the Dust she wants and Pyrrha is pretty much almost as rich as Weiss with all her sponsorships, and I don't use any of the stipend, so Blake's pretty much got free reign on it. But still, I feel like our stipend might be a tad different to yours."

Ruby nodded a quick nod. "Yeah, Dad says that Beacon calculates the stipend for each team individually. It's almost not enough each month regardless, but still."

The conversation came to an abrupt halt as the airship touched down. "Now arriving at Vale."

The two team leaders quickly stood up and made their way outside into the cool early-evening air, heading deeper into the city.

The city of Vale wasn't all that busy this night, to the relief of both Jaune and Ruby.

They were headed towards a BBB, a department store catering towards Hunters, a store that Ruby seemed to frequent more so than any other of his friends, and it was clear how familiar she was with the place as she stepped inside without so much as a glance around to gain her bearings.

Jaune followed her inside the 'Bullets, Ballistics and Bombs', as it was called, and had to be surprisingly quick on his feet to maintain pace with the excitable girl. It appeared that even if it was just an errand to pick up supplies, Ruby was still giddy at the thought of being able to spend time inside.

When Jaune finally caught up, Ruby had already grabbed about ten boxes of .50 BMG ammo, standard grade, and was hastily shoving them into a small bag at her side.

"Jeez, Ruby, slow down a bit. I'm nowhere near as fast as you," Jaune said with an exasperated sigh.

"Aw, slowpoke, it's fine. The sooner we're done with the errands, the sooner we can look at the new stuff!" Ruby exclaimed, practically zooming off to another shelving unit, eyes scanning over the stock until she located what she was looking for.

To Jaune, the series of seemingly random serial numbers meant next to nothing to him, but to Ruby, it was as if she was reading a language that she was fluent in. Her hand darted out with practiced ease as she grasped a box and quickly checked the contents, before placing it in the bag and moving onto the next.

Jaune had never really had a reason to enter a Hunter store such as this, even with his semblance. He didn't have a gun, or a weapon that really needed maintenance. The most he had to do was occasionally oil the mecha-shift components on his shield, and even then that was a rare enough occurrence that he still hadn't replaced the single bottle of oil his father had once purchased.

The BBB was an expansive store, full of goodies, and Jaune could hear the sounds of an engineering area in the back, machines still in operation even at this time of the evening. It wasn't too much of a surprise that Ruby felt so comfortable here.

The only thing it seemed the store lacked was Dust.

"So, is that all?" Jaune asked as Ruby placed the last box in her bag.

"It's all I need, yeah. But we should look at their shields, see if they have anything that might be an inspiration!" Ruby replied, and Jaune managed to catch her shoulder before she rushed off once again.

"Okay, but a little slower? My calves are killing me."

They weren't, of course, _System Body_ prevented any undue aches, but it was still enough of an excuse to get Ruby to nod and frantically vibrate as she withheld her speed, walking at a decently normal pace.

They arrived at the display cabinets within easily thirty seconds, but to Ruby it seemed a lot longer, and she was straining not to burst away in a cloud of rose petals and leave an exasperated Jaune to follow her.

Of course, once she actually saw the shields, her thin patience snapped like a twig underfoot a Beowolf.

Jaune sighed amusedly as she darted back and forth, admiring each and every shield like it was a pet in a petstore.

"Woah, this one turns into a rifle! And this one lights on fire! And this one has razor blades for edges!" Ruby exclaimed, eyeing the shields with awe.

The last one sparked Jaune's interest, and he leaned over to look at it. "Huh… that's pretty useful."

His mind conjured the memory of earlier that day, when Blake had wrapped his wrist up in her ribbon. "That would've been handy earlier."

Ruby laughed. "I'll bet. Blake's a pretty tricky opponent to face, though."

Jaune laughed alongside her. "If your sister has anything to say about it. Yang still hasn't figured out that charging at her doesn't give her any advantage."

"Yeah, but Yang'll figure it out at some point. I hear you made a bet with her, though."

Jaune nodded as they moved down the line of cabinets, browsing the weaponry as they talked. "Yeah, I guess I did. Still, we don't have combat class for at least a night, so who knows when that bet will be settled."

"Mmhmm. Do you think you can beat her?"

Jaune sighed, giving it thought before answering. "I don't know. If I pull a bunch of stuff out of sleeves, then maybe. As far as the first year rankings go, it's Pyrrha, Yang, and then probably me. Or at least, that's what I've seen. We've never sparred one-on-one in combat class, and I haven't sparred with anyone really outside of our regular training. I reckon I could take you, or Ren, or Blake, but as for Pyrrha and Yang… well, I guess we'll have to see."

"You think you could win in a fight against me, huh?" Ruby asked, an expression surprisingly similar to that of her sister's on her face.

"Is that a challenge?" Jaune asked, grinning in return.

"You've got a lot of tricks thanks to whatever your semblance is, and you might've been able to defeat Nora, but I'm a team leader! I'm a whole other basket of chickens!" Ruby exclaimed.

"I don't think that's a saying, Ruby."

"Whatever! Doesn't matter! Fight me!"

Jaune laughed. "Finally, some familial resemblance."

Ruby's pout was legendary. It equaled, if not beat some of the pouts his younger sisters had given him before.

Jaune relented. "Alright, fine, when we get some spare time to train. I'm still sore from the two fights we had today, and if I remember correctly, I trounced you in the first one."

"I'm still kinda mad you tied me up with sausages."

"What else was I supposed to tie you up with?!"

* * *

Ruby paid for her supplies quickly, and the two left the BBB at a leisurely pace, Ruby's excitement having died down now that they were leaving.

Of course, the silence of their lack of mutual conversational skills gave way to a sound in stereo, as both found themselves rather hungry, stomachs rumbling in protest to the lack of sustenance.

"Dinner?" Jaune asked, and Ruby nodded. "What are you feeling like?"

Ruby pondered the question. "I don't know. I would say cookies or strawberries, but Yang would get mad and fly out to Vale just to tell me off. Mistralian?"

Jaune nodded. "I know a nice place not too far from here. They've got fortune cookies, too, so that technically counts."

Ruby rolled her eyes. "I like cookies, but I won't go mad for them. I mean, don't get me wrong, I still want fortune cookies, but I'm not going to only eat them."

"Sure."

"Jaune!" Ruby exclaimed, once again pouting.

Jaune couldn't help it. He laughed. "Sorry, Ruby. It's too easy to tease you, I see why Yang get's her kicks from it."

"Stupid blondes," Ruby muttered as he led the way down the streets.

"Speaking of blondes, we don't talk all that much about family. You've met mine, at least briefly. What about yours?" Jaune asked as they walked.

"Oh. It's… a little complicated. My Dad teaches at Signal, as does my Uncle Qrow, but, well… When I was young, my mother passed away. She was great, but she went on a mission and never came back."

"Oh. I'm sorry to hear that, sorry for bringing it up," Jaune apologised.

"No, it's alright. I've come to terms with it. Mom was the best, though. Supermom, baker of cookies and slayer of Grimm, we used to say," Ruby said, a sad smile on her face. "She was my birth mother and Yang's step-mother, but Yang called her Mom just the same."

Jaune gave her a smile. "Sounds like the two of you were close."

"Yeah. She was the reason I wanted to be a Huntress. I wanted to be just like her. Dad said she was just like I am, always wanting to help people. I strive to live up to her reputation, you know?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, I get that. Mom, Dad and most of my sisters are Hunters, and good ones. The Arc family has a lineage of heroes that goes back a long time. My grandfather fought in the great war, with Crocea Mors, and his grandfather was, apparently, a great hero of some kind. I grew up on those stories. It's why I wanted to come to Beacon in the first place."

Jaune held open the door of the restaurant for Ruby as they arrived, conversation halting for a moment as they were led to a table by a kindly looking waiter.

They sat and opened the menu, browsing through and picking before resuming their previous conversation.

"I didn't know you had such a big, important history, Jaune," Ruby said, amazed.

"Nah, it's nothing like that. I mean, don't get me wrong, I'm proud to be an Arc, but I don't hold that much stock in it. I'm not like Weiss, I don't have a crushing amount of pressure put on me by my family to perform well. They just want me to enjoy what I do, and to have good friends. I feel like I've already done that, so… I guess all that's left is to stop Torchwick and the White Fang. Easy, right?"

"Pfft," Ruby snorted. "If only. So, we're in agreement? I feel like we've been talking the prospect of stopping Torchwick and the Fang back and forth for a while now, but I have as much stake in it as anyone else. We're the team leaders, so it's our decision, right?"

"Yeah, I guess. I mean, I'm not going to force AWBN into doing something they don't want to do unless there's a good reason, but we're pretty much all in agreement. Even Pyrrha, though that isn't that big a surprise. We're a pretty agreeable bunch, when you consider that both Blake and Weiss have significant stakes invested."

Ruby nodded. "Mmm. I won't force RRYN to do anything either, like you said, but I want, no, need to stop Torchwick. I should've been able to when I first bumped into him, so I kinda feel a bit guilty that I didn't manage to at least subdue him."

The conversation paused again for a moment as the waiter placed their food down in front of them, Jaune and Ruby having both chosen a noodle bowl, from somewhere in Northern Mistral.

"Yum, this is good," Ruby muttered.

"Yeah, it is. About what you were saying, though, I've fought Torchwick too. He's a hard man to pin down, especially when he's got backup. I don't think you or I can stop him, at least solo. Plus he's always got that pink and brown haired girl somewhere nearby, and her semblance seems to make him able to teleport, or at least that's what I think it is. I don't know any specifics."

Ruby's brow furrowed in concentration. "What pink and brown haired girl?" She asked, after a moment.

Jaune's expression quickly matched Ruby's. "Short, pink, white and brown theme, heterochromia. Shattered into glass when I hit the two of them. Uses an umbrella, or some kind of parasol."

"Strange. When I fought him, Roman escaped in a Bullhead, but we fought a woman in red, who used what I think was fire Dust with Dust-casting. Nothing about her seems the same as who you're describing. He's got multiple partners?" Ruby looked concerned.

"Seems like it. I haven't spoken all that much to Blake about the extent of the White Fang's capabilities, I figured I'd save it until we run a briefing of sorts, but I can imagine they have more than one capable fighter. We aren't going to be able to do all of this in a single semester."

Ruby agreed, continuing to eat. "Any ideas where we start?"

Jaune shrugged in reply. "Not really, but I'm certain we can figure something out. Weiss could grab some files on recent thefts from the SDC and Blake could look for White Fang activity, but I'm not sure what the rest of us could do."

"I know that Yang knows a couple people, she can ask around for information on Torchwick. I don't know if Ren, Nora or I are going to be all that much help on the recon side of things, but combat-wise, well, you've seen us fight."

"Yeah, I have. A little too close, far too many times. I think I've still got mental trauma," Jaune joked, and Ruby reached over and rapped him on the head.

"Don't be mean. You did agree."

"And you did cheat."

"Uncle Qrow says there's no such thing as a fair fight."

Jaune hummed in agreement. "True enough, I guess. Not like my semblance let's me fight fair to begin with."

"You haven't really explained that, yet," Ruby said, frowning at him.

Jaune finished his noodle bowl, before replying. "Yeah, I know. It's not something I can talk about in public, but I've been meaning to explain it. My team knows, and I think it's only fair that you guys do too, but it's dangerous. Ozpin warned me not to talk about it."

Ruby continued to frown as she finished her food, thinking about what he had said. "If Ozpin warned you not to talk about it, why are you going to tell me?"

Jaune gave the shorter girl a rueful smile. "I figured Ozpin meant not to tell anyone I didn't trust implicitly, and besides, if I have to hide it, I don't need you guys trying to figure it out and maybe accidentally expose it. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying you would, but I have to be cautious."

Ruby nodded. "Yeah, I get it. If you want to tell us go ahead, but if you want, I can explain it to the rest of RRYN. No point repeating it over and over again."

Jaune waved down the server quickly, asking for some fortune cookies and the bill, and quickly paid the 40 Lien.

"Hey, I don't mind paying my share!" Ruby exclaimed, but Jaune just shrugged.

"Too late."

Ruby pouted once more, before cracking open her fortune cookie.

"Trust your intuition. The universe is guiding your life," Ruby read, quirking an eyebrow. "What's yours say?"

Jaune opened his, splinters of fortune cookie cascading across the table, and he read the small piece of paper. "Along the sandy path is where you will find the one who came before."

"Any idea what that means?"

Jaune glanced at Ruby, his expression deadpan. "Does anyone know what a fortune cookie means?"

Ruby shrugged. "Don't know. Maybe there's someone out there with a semblance that can predict the future, but only through fortune cookies."

"At this point, it wouldn't surprise me. Come on, let's head back to Beacon," Jaune said, and the two stood, thanking the server and departing.

The street had gotten darker since their entry to the restaurant, and the streetlamps had lit themselves as usual.

"So, if you're going to explain your semblance, when and where?" Ruby asked, and Jaune could tell she was excitedly curious and doing her best not to sound it.

"You can't wait, can you?" Jaune asked deadpan, and Ruby looked abashedly at the ground.

"I mean, you don't have to…" She muttered.

Jaune placed his hand on her head, to Ruby's annoyance. "Tomorrow, Ruby. We can grab all of us, and go down to where I train usually."

"Aww, okay."

Their trip back to Beacon was peaceful, if a little chilly, and as they coasted towards the shuttle bay, Jaune realised that he hadn't gotten anything he'd needed in the city.

' _Oh well. It was worth it.'_

* * *

 **Well, I have to say, that was probably one of my favourite chapters to write. I had fun writing the dialogue between Ruby and Jaune, establishing their characters a little more. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!**

 **Now, onto reviews!**

 **Mordred's Stories: Yeah, you're absolutely right. This is what happens when I don't spellcheck my goddamned Author's Notes.**

 **SentinalSlice: Who said it was Summer? And I agree, Gravity is going to be fun to play around with, when Jaune gets a hold of it. I'm still working on at what point Jaune gets what elements to play with, and soon enough Jaune will find himself with Fire, probably next. Gravity may be a Grimm drop.**

 **Slenderbrine: As always, your chapter titles are far better than mine ever are. I mean, sure, this note is written before I've come up with the chapter title, but it's probably going to suck anyway.**

 **Xerzo LotCN: Well, good news is I'm planning on going pretty AU soon enough, so you won't have to deal with lackluster character development. Your cover story is actually what I'm going to use, it worked out with my planning almost perfectly, so thanks for the idea. I'm sure I've mentioned before that the pairing is most likely going to be Lancaster, but not for a little while. I'll tease it, like this chapter has a few notions of it, but it won't be an established relationship for a while. Also, his friends showing up, that's_the_**

 **jedimasterb10: Huh, I wonder if you're a Jojo fan /s. And you will know more! At some point! Probably!**

 **Guest: You and everyone else seems to share the opinion, but I can't and won't confirm nor deny any possible identities.**

 **NickSkyz: I get what you're saying about the teasing, and I do agree to some point, but I'm establishing relationships between the characters as friendly and comfortable, which makes it more interesting when that changes. It's lighthearted at the moment, but things may get darker, soon enough. Also we're only slightly following canon, really. Jaune's still at Beacon, so it's going to follow that plotline, and he can't really just skip class. The next chapter is a bit of a difference to canon, of course, but still within the school-style of plot.**

 **kaiokenkaizer: Read above concerning the teasing, and don't worry, there won't be a party system outside of a little idea I'm working with. Not a party system necessarily, and they won't be getting any of Jaune's skills.**

 **asdfbvcxz3355: The System isn't supposed to be hidden completely. One of the late plot points I have, all the way in Vacuo, relies on it being at least somewhat known by specific people. I won't go into it any further, however.**

 **TypedSomeWords: Next chapter will have Jaune explaining things to RRYN, but considering who RRYN is comprised of, I expect them to understand it a little better. Ooh, Zombie Apocalypse fic, another idea I won't be able to get out of my head. The version updates mostly serve as a method for me to either fix or retcon issues, as I work. This is still my first attempt at something this size, and when you consider just how big the spreadsheet has reached, well, I'm just one guy. Of course, it will still have plot relevance, but V0.0.2 is a small update.**

 **Alright, that does it for reviews this week! Thank you everyone for reviewing, favouriting, and following!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	22. Fisticuffs and Clearings

**Apologies for the late chapter, that's my bad. At least I got it out, even if I'm not one-hundred percent on the chapter. Enjoy!**

* * *

"Unlike Ms Xiao Long, few of you are experienced in hand to hand combat without your weapons. Tell me, why is that?"

Professor Goodwitch stood at her podium in the Combat classroom, eyes scanning across the room with her typical intensity.

No one raised a hand to answer.

"Hm. The reason, I assume, is that you spend such a long time training to become good with your weapons that you forget that it is just what it is. A weapon. A tool. What would happen to you if you were disarmed? If your weapon jammed, or broke, in a combat scenario? Would you have the time you needed to recover or repair your weapon, or would you have to fight without it?"

The classroom remained silent.

"If you have read the syllabus, which I do so hope you have done, as I did tell you to do that in our first class, you would know that this semester's grades are not on how much you have improved in sparring, but on an assignment and a practical exam. The first day of next week is the day you shall begin your assignment, so I expect you to be prepared for that. However, today we shall be sparring _without_ our weapons, to see who has a grasp on unarmed combat, and who is lacking."

Jaune looked around at his friends, most of which looked a little nervous. Even Pyrrha looked a little apprehensive, but Jaune had faith that his partner was a competent enough unarmed fighter to simply destroy anyone she went up against.

"Ms Xiao Long, seeing as your weapon does remove any necessary training, you will be exempt from sparring, and instead will be doing your best to help your team to understand their flaws and strengths when it comes to unarmed combat. I assume you are accepting of this?"

Yang gave the professor a thumbs-up, to which Goodwitch just shook her head slightly.

"Now, take half an hour to practice and understand your strengths, and meet back here for sparring. Dismissed."

It wasn't all that rare that Goodwitch dismissed them from the classroom to prepare, as the adjacent sparring halls also served as an additional part of the class's area, and were always reserved for the class.

"Ruby, mind if we tag along, make use of our resident brawler?" Jaune asked, and Ruby nodded, motioning for AWBN to follow RRYN as they, alongside many of the other students, departed.

Yang bumped up against Jaune as they maneuvered through the crowd of fellow classmates, giving him a cheeky grin.

"So, how was you and Ruby's date last night?" Yang asked, that teasing smile on her face.

Jaune could only wish that _System Mind_ could nullify embarrassment. "It wasn't like that!"

"Oh yeah, real convincing Jauney. I asked Ruby the same thing, and that wasn't what she said," Yang continued, poking Jaune in the ribs with her elbow.

Jaune blanked for a moment, before realising that Yang was messing with him. "Whatever, Yang. It sounds like you're jealous of your sister."

A slight frown began to crease across Yang's forehead. "Nah, Jauney, I don't get jealous."

Jaune, confidently assessing his ability to get away with another comeback as a solid zero out of ten, just nodded.

That only seemed to make Yang a little more frustrated, and Jaune realised that he should've just done anything else.

"Yang, get over here! You heard what the professor said, you're our trainer!" Ruby called out, snapping Yang out of her own head.

"Yeah, yeah, sis, I gotcha," Yang replied, catching up as the eight stepped inside one of the sparring halls, thankfully not the one that AWBN had almost destroyed with Jaune's Dust experimentation.

Yang gave a massive grin as she stepped up to the proverbial plate. "Alright, listen up! You will not call me Yang, you will call me sir! Is that clear?!" She shouted.

Nora hopped to attention with a quick salute, whilst both Ruby and Ren made half-hearted attempts at a salute. Jaune and the rest of AWBN shared a glance of confusion.

"What's this, AWBN, no salute? Do you not salute your drill instructor?" Yang exclaimed, eyes glowing red as she stared at the four.

Jaune, unwilling to get any more on Yang's bad side, no matter the cause, quickly snapped the most professional salute he could. "Apologies, sir!"

Weiss and Pyrrha followed suit without complaint, willing to indulge the blonde, and Blake gave a hefty sigh before doing the same.

"That's what I thought! Now, split off, spar! Jauney, you're with me!" Drill Instructor Yang shouted, and Jaune released a sigh before stepping up next to her. "Ren, you're with Nora! Blake, Pyrrha! Weiss, you get Ruby!"

With her instructions issued, Yang turned to Jaune, who was in the process of removing his hoodie. "Oh, I see. Ruby gets dinner, I get a show," She teased.

Jaune couldn't help but laugh at that. "Hoodie's older, a little too tight. Gets in the way for what I have planned.

It was apparent that the increase to Jaune's stats had done some work to his body, and what had once been lanky, skinny muscle with barely any definition was now much more defined. His undershirt was a simple white t-shirt, and as he tossed the hoodie onto one of the surrounding benches, he heard Yang wolf-whistle.

"You might have more training in hand-to-hand combat, sir, but we're still allowed to use our semblances."

"Oh, is that right?" Yang asked, grinning.

"If only this counted towards the bet," Jaune replied in kind.

Yang's pout was nowhere near as lethal as Ruby's, but it still held some sway. "Maybe we'll get paired up when the sparring happens. Who knows?"

"If Goodwitch is watching, there's a chance," Jaune replied, before breaking into a _Sprint_ , heading straight at his fellow blonde.

Yang raised her arms in a block, surprise on her face, as she easily parried one of Jaune's swings. "Starting early, didn't take you for a cheap fighter!" She exclaimed.

Jaune ducked underneath her right hook and took her left jab on his elbow as he swayed. "Ruby mentioned something about an uncle of hers. Figured you'd be used to it."

Yang's laugh was met with the sound of a fist smacking flesh as her jab broke through Jaune's guard, smacking into his chest. "Oh, it's on!"

Jaune buckled from the hit, air being driven from his lungs, but he used the space it had bought him to roll to the side, Yang's follow-up uppercut missing by an inch as he regained his footing, spinning to face the approaching blonde.

The System gave him an intimate knowledge of unarmed combat thanks to his _Weapon Proficiency: Unarmed Melee_ skill, but seeing as it was at level 4 Jaune was a little worried to be facing down Yang.

She was close enough now, and Jaune swung, his haymaker a feint for a left jab when she went to block it, but Yang was a smart fighter, there was no way such a simple trick was going to be able to throw her off. She stepped into his strike, grabbing his arm below the shoulder with one hand and using the other to break past his guard and smack into his stomach, as she hurled him over her shoulder, slamming him into the ground.

She was quick, far too quick for Jaune to be able to counter anything, and as she pressed her knee down on his chest and applied pressure, Jaune realised he couldn't move anything but his hand, everything else pretty much pinned to the ground.

"So, Jaune, got a safeword I should know about?" Yang teased, pressing her knee down harder.

Jaune responded with a groan, tapping his hand a few times against the ground.

That signal was one Yang recognized, and she let up, keeping her hold on one arm and tugging him to his feet.

"Not bad for a beginner. Especially someone who fights with a sword and shield," Yang commented, turning to watch the other fights.

Jaune, as he regained his bearings and his breath, did the same.

Yang was smarter than Jaune had ever given her credit for, and she knew how to train unarmed combat, it seemed. Teaching seemed to run in the family.

Pairing up Ren and Nora, Ruby and Weiss and Blake and Pyrrha was smart for multiple reasons, and as Jaune watched he could see why.

Ren and Nora were familiar with each other from before Beacon, they'd mentioned as much, but where one was an evasive fighter, the other was more like Yang, and liked to hit things hard.

Without her hammer, Nora was at a disadvantage, as most of them were without their weapons, but it seemed Ren was the most competent, using what Jaune recognized as Mistralian martial arts to parry and dodge every wild swing Nora sent his way.

Jaune turned to watch his teammates sparring, Pyrrha and Blake both getting frustrated with the other.

Pyrrha and Blake were both evasive fighters, though where the skill difference was concerned it was split. Equal in opposite ways, Pyrrha wasn't as evasive as Blake, but Blake wasn't as strong or experienced as Pyrrha was. It mostly boiled down to Blake making an attack, missing, Pyrrha attempting to retaliate, and missing as Blake used her semblance to break away, before going in once again in an attempt to catch the champion off-guard.

Lastly, Weiss and Ruby seemed to be struggling. This was the fight Yang had kept her eye on the most, and Jaune could see why.

The two smallest members of their group, and the most dependent on their weapons, Ruby and Weiss had barely any experience fighting without their weapons, and even though they both possessed physical strength, it was their technique that was suffering the most.

"Well, deputy drill instructor Arc, want to help me teach them?" Yang asked, and Jaune turned his head to face her.

"Deputy?" He asked, confused.

"Out of the eight of us, you're tied for second for unarmed skill, technique-wise. Everyone else but Ren is struggling with their technique, and Blake seems to be exclusively using kicks, so that needs to be corrected," Yang answered.

Jaune just shrugged in response. "Sure."

Yang turned to face the sparring group. "Alright, enough! I think we've seen enough!"

The noises stopped as the other six turned to face Yang.

"Deputy Instructor Arc and I have seen plenty! Weiss, Ruby, you have no technique to speak of, you'll be with Jaune! Deputy Instructor Ren, try to teach Pyrrha and Blake your martial arts, or at least the basics! Nora, you're with me!" Yang called out, and they were quick to follow suit.

Jaune led Weiss and Ruby over to the side. "So, Yang's kinda sprung this on me, but she's right. Ruby, you know how skilled your sister is in a fight. Has she tried to teach you unarmed combat before?"

Ruby nodded glumly. "Yeah, but I never really listened. I always figured I'd have Crescent Rose on me."

"Weiss, what about you. Ever done any kind of unarmed training before?"

Weiss shook her head. "No. It was seen as undignified."

At that, Jaune snorted. "I'm pretty sure fighting Grimm in the muck is as undignified as it gets, Weiss. Do you share your father's opinion on unarmed combat, or can we get stuck into it?"

Weiss shook her head again. "By all means, Arc."

"Okay, first things first, ball up your hands, make fists."

Weiss and Ruby did so, and Jaune, with the knowledge his semblance was providing him, stepped close and explained. "You don't want to have your thumb anywhere but underneath your fingers, out of the way. If you wrap your thumb in your fingers, you're likely to break your thumb, same as if it's sticking out."

Ruby's fists were competent, and Weiss quickly corrected hers, and Jaune continued.

"Alright, there are three basic strikes. A cross," Jaune said, demonstrating a cross as he threw his hand in an angled punch, "a jab," he said as he punched again, fist flying straight, "and a kick," he said, leaning back and extending his foot.

"The cross is easy, as is the jab. If I held my hands up, and told you to throw a cross, your left hand would hit my hand on your right, whereas if you threw a jab, your left hand would hit my hand on your left. Got it?"

Weiss and Ruby nodded.

"A kick like this, you aren't doing anything fancy. You want to lift your leg and push, and use the force to gain some space. It isn't a roundhouse or anything like a martial art, just a quick method to gain some space. I'd suggest only doing it to an opponent that either isn't expecting it, or to an opponent that is off-balance."

Weiss and Ruby nodded again.

"Alright, I want you to throw a cross, a jab, and a cross, in that order, so I can see your technique."

The two obliged, doing so.

"Okay, so, how did that feel?" Jaune asked.

"Uh…" Ruby began, before trailing off.

"I'm not sure what you mean?" Weiss said, a little confused.

"Did it feel like it had all the power in it you could muster?" Jaune rephrased.

Once again, both girls shook their heads.

"Thought not. Instead of using just your arm, you want to use your whole body. Twist into the punch. Keep your feet steady but if you want, step into the strike. A good punch uses the whole body, like so," Jaune said, demonstrating as he jabbed forwards, his shoulder turning into the punch as his leg twisted, balancing his weight on the balls of his feet.

Ruby and Weiss nodded in understanding, and tried again, throwing the combo with the added momentum they were making.

"Yeah, that's it. It's a basic technique, but if you get disarmed, this is all you should need to break contact and retrieve your weapon," Jaune said, stepping back. "Keep practicing it, get familiar."

Jaune maintained his vigil over the two until Yang called out. "Alright, we're done! Goodwitch wants us back in class!"

Jaune followed as they left, grabbing his hoodie and slinging it over his shoulder as he walked back.

"Welcome back. Now, you spar," Goodwitch said without preamble, once all the class had retaken their seats. She accessed the recessed screen in her podium, and it quickly randomized the fighters, each member of the class spinning through the wheels until it selected the two.

"Lie Ren and Jaune Arc. Please get yourselves ready, but leave your weapons. Semblances are allowed."

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Combat Class: Lie Ren**_ **]**

 **[Win the spar against Lie Ren in Combat Class.]**

 **[Rewards: 20,000 XP, Skill Book]**

Jaune read the notification, before turning to his friend, eyeing his fellow male. "Good luck, Ren."

The monk-like boy nodded in kind. "Likewise, Jaune."

As the two stepped onto the sparring ring and the field activated, Jaune shook his hands in preparation.

"3. 2. 1. Begin!"

* * *

Ren's palm met Jaune's fist as the black-haired boy parried Jaune's strike, pushing it to the side and bringing his other palm towards Jaune's chest.

Jaune could see the Aura glowing on it, and he quickly stretched his arm out, his own palm pushing the attack to the side, and Jaune used that as an excuse to get in close in much the same way Yang had done to him, but Ren was ready for a grapple, bringing his knee up to break contact as it slammed into Jaune's stomach.

Jaune rolled backwards as another palm missed where his head had been, and he realised that using his semblance was going to be the only way he won this fight.

Ren was using an advanced technique, directing his Aura into his hands. That was something Jaune could do, too, but not with Aura.

Jaune backed up a step and began to channel Mana into his fists, swaying to the side as one of Ren's attacks narrowly missed him.

Soon enough, Jaune was given the notification he'd been hoping for.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Punch (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can envelop your fist in Mana, supercharging your punch. Costs 50 MP to cast._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

Ren swung again, and Jaune's fist met Ren's palm.

The explosion that resulted of the directed Mana and Aura from Jaune and Ren respectively blew them both backwards, the two skidding along the ground, heels digging in to the ground in attempts to keep their balance.

Jaune cast another _Mana Punch_ as Ren focused Aura into his palms once more, and the two shot at each other again, feet pounding the tiles as they closed in with each other.

What Ruby had said about her uncle, it was still stuck in his head, the notion of using more than just his fists playing in his mind.

Technically, Goodwitch had said that semblances were allowed, so what was stopping him?

His distracted mind cost him as his punch missed Ren's head by an inch, Ren's palm hitting Jaune's chest and actually launching him into the air.

Ren jumped up and delivered a punishing ax kick to Jaune's back, driving him into the ground before he could react, and it was only the delay between Jaune and Ren landing that gave the blond time to roll backwards, onto his feet.

As Jaune recovered, he gave up trying to keep it fair.

"Sorry, Ren," Jaune said. His hand pointed at the other boy, and Jaune cast _Spinning Mana Bullet._

Five spinning orbs of Mana shot out from his fingertip in a burst as Jaune willed them at Ren, the boy's eyes widening slightly as he flipped and dodged to the best of his ability.

Jaune rushed in with a _Flash Step_ , a _Mana Punch_ cast on his hand, and as Ren raised his arms to block, Jaune struck.

It hit hard, Jaune could see, and as nearly half of Ren's Aura dropped from the bar above his head, the boy managed to regain his footing, teetering near the edge of the arena's border.

Jaune wasn't going to let up though, and the ten second timer for _Flash Step_ hadn't run out yet, and as he appeared in front of Ren again, the boy realised that this was the end of the fight.

Pinned against the proverbial wall, no time to act, Ren bore the brunt of a point blank _Mana Impact_ , doing less damage than the _Mana Punch_ but knocking him completely clear of the ring.

Jaune released the breath he was holding, as Goodwitch announced the victor.

"Mr Arc wins the spar. Mr Ren, your unarmed combat is remarkable, and you appear to have talent both with and without your weapon. Try not to give your opponent space unless you need it, and keep up the pressure. Mr Arc, your hand to hand is also good, though without semblances I do not hesitate to say Mr Ren is your better. Try not to hold back in future fights, however, unless you plan to goad your opponent into a trap."

As Jaune helped Ren up from the ground like the boy had to him the day prior, the two nodded at the comments.

"No hard feelings, right Ren?" Jaune asked, as the two made their way back up to the stands.

Ren took a moment before replying. "No. My semblance isn't combat-oriented, so you had the advantage from the beginning. Like the professor said, without semblances I would've had the upper hand. It was a good fight."

Jaune was thankful for his response. He could always trust Ren to be measured and contemplative, not one prone to rash decisions. He was honestly just glad not to have accidentally alienated his only male friend.

Well, Jaune wasn't sure if Sun counted as a male friend, they'd barely spoken, but still.

"Woah, Jaune, Ren, that was awesome!" Ruby piped up once they reached their seats, and from the looks of things their fight had garnered much attention from the other six.

"You nearly had 'em, Renny! I don't think I could get anywhere close!" Nora cheered, wrapping her teammate and childhood friend in a tight hug.

Jaune could see the small smile on Ren's face, but he left it as is, not wanting to spoil the mood. Goodwitch was already calling down two people, Cardin and Sky, it seemed, but he paid them no mind, checking the notification that had popped.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Combat Class: Lie Ren**_ **]**

 **[Win the spar against Lie Ren in Combat Class.]**

 **[Rewards: 20,000 XP, Skill Book]**

He wasn't going to read the skill book now, that was a little too obvious for a semblance he was supposed to be keeping a secret.

Jaune leaned over to Ruby, sitting in the row below him. "Ruby, grab RRYN after class and follow me."

Ruby turned to face him, whispering back, 'Is it your semblance?"

Jaune just nodded, and Ruby's face lit up with excitement as she practically grabbed her sister by the arm and began whispering into her ear.

"Are you sure it's wise to tell RRYN, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked, from her seat next to her leader.

"They'd find out eventually. Better to hear it from my mouth than someone else, and it means I can point out how dangerous it is for others to learn about it. Besides, it means that if it's just the eight of us I don't have to hold back, which kind of limits my training," Jaune replied, and his partner nodded in understanding.

As Jaune watched the fight unfold in the arena, he could see Ruby bouncing up and down excitedly right alongside her partner, the ginger almost replicating Ruby's excitement.

The revelation to AWBN was nowhere near as painful as the revelation to RRYN was going to be, he suspected.

* * *

The climb down, as usual, was a lot faster than the climb back up, but with all eight members of the two teams, it was at least a little more entertaining.

The clearing at the base of the Beacon Cliffs was almost exactly how Jaune had left it the afternoon before, though if he looked closely he could see grass roots sprouting from the various patches of scorched dirt, and moss growing on the inside of the holes splintered into tree trunks.

"C'mon, Jaune!" Ruby called out, jumping up and down on the spot, unable to contain her energy.

His fellow team leader was the first to reach the base, her speed proving to be incredibly advantageous in multiple aspects of movement, including the fact that she had just leaped off the cliff and used her scythe to slow her descent enough to where her landing barely touched her Aura reserves.

The rest, albeit Nora, who had followed Ruby off the cliff-side, had climbed down more slowly and carefully, though not for any safety-based reason. Jaune was going to tell them regardless of how fast they descended, after all.

Not to say that Ren and Yang weren't actively anticipating finding out exactly what Jaune was capable of, and how.

Once they'd all reached the clearing, Jaune noticed that whilst the rest of AWBN had gone to find seats on the various upturned logs and rocks, RRYN were standing in front of him, awaiting his reveal.

"So, uh…" Jaune began, once again realising that explaining his semblance didn't get easier with experience.

"What's your semblance, Jaune?" Ruby asked, staring wide-eyed at him.

Jaune decided that, once again, biting the bullet was the way to go.

"My semblance makes my life pretty much like I was a video game character in a video game," Jaune said, to the stunned expressions that stared at him.

A single beat of silence passed through the clearing, before Ruby, Yang and Nora all exclaimed "What?!"

Ruby, however, was the only one to follow up on that question. "How?! That's so cool!"

Jaune gave a nervous chuckle as his hand, obeying no directive, reached up and scratched the back of his head.

"So, what, you have skills and stats and quests and stuff?" Yang asked, and Jaune nodded.

"Oh-my-gods-that's-so-cool!" Ruby said, fast enough that Jaune struggled to parse it for a moment.

"But this has to stay secret. Seven people knowing is already quite a lot, but I needed you all to know, to understand, so I could use my semblance around you guys without having to either come up with a cover story or just tell you I can't say. Means I don't have to hold back, either," Jaune explained, and RRYN all nodded in understanding.

"So, that's what you used against me today. Your semblance makes using directed Aura projectiles easier?" Ren asked, and Jaune shook his head.

"Not quite. It isn't Aura, it's Mana. Magic, I guess. I have a bunch of magic skills that I can use, and have used. Plus, I don't think I've reached a limit to how many I can have, or what they can do," Jaune said, and Yang raised one eyebrow.

"So, what can you do?" The blonde asked, and Jaune grinned.

"I think it's easier if you ask what can't I do. I can create earthquakes, bullets made of lightning infused Mana, walk on surfaces, even summon."

The last part caught Ruby's attention. "Summon? Like, what, pets?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, of a sort. I can summon Bound Souls, which are pretty much good versions of Grimm that fight with me. Speaking of which, Blake, Pyrrha, Weiss, I haven't shown you my newest summon yet."

The three girls turned their attention towards Jaune as he addressed them, and Jaune called forth Cadejo and Alcmena.

As the wolf and the heron summons appeared, there was a loud hiss.

Jaune quickly glanced at Blake, who, instead of calmly and quietly reading her book atop the log she'd sat down on, was now cowering behind it, peering at Cadejo, golden eyes slitted.

"What's wrong, Blakey? Not a dog person?" Yang teased, a grin on her face.

Cadejo tilted his head at the faunus, confused, but was quickly sidetracked when Ruby practically shot up to him, wrapping him in a hug. "So soft!"

"The Beowolf Soul is Cadejo, and the Stymphalian Soul is Alcmena. Male and female, respectively."

Weiss stepped closer to Cadejo, kneeling down and running her hand through the golden fur on his back. "He's beautiful. A beowolf, you said?"

"Yeah. From an Alpha Beowolf Fang I picked up ages ago, now. Costed a Soul Orb too, come to mention it," Jaune replied.

The heiress looked away from Cadejo. "What's a Soul Orb?"

Jaune outstretched his hand, willing _Soul Harvest_ to activate. "I made it with a skill I got from that seven on one fight. _Soul Harvest_. It allows me to harvest Ambient Aura into a Soul Orb."

The bright golden-white light that emitted from his hand as he activated the skill lit up the clearing.

"Woah…" Ruby trailed off, staring as Jaune was lit up, and soon it was over, in his hand a glowing Soul Orb.

"Another Minor quality, huh. I wonder what it would take to get higher quality orbs." Jaune mused to himself, before handing it to Weiss, who cradled it carefully.

"Such a strange feeling…" Weiss said, staring into the depths of the orb.

"Yeah, that's what I thought as well. It almost feels like a heartbeat," Jaune remarked, as Weiss passed it to Ruby's outstretched hand.

Cadejo was still between the two, very much enjoying the company, and it appeared that Alcmena had settled on Pyrrha's shoulder, comfortably getting stroked along the back by the champion.

"Damn, Jaune. Here I thought Pyrrha and I were the strongest first years, and yet you just reveal that you've been holding back?" Yang commented, placing one arm against her hip.

Jaune raised both hands in mock surrender. "My semblance equals the playing field, but as for raw talent, you two far outweigh me. Hell, all of you do. My semblance is practically cheating."

"No, Jaune." The sharpness of Pyrrha's voice snapped Jaune's eyes to her, and she continued. "Your semblance is your semblance. Relying on it isn't cheating, no matter how powerful."

Jaune's hand reached up and scratched at the back of his head yet again. "Yeah, right. Sorry, Pyrrha."

Pyrrha's tone relaxed. "Don't be sorry, Jaune, there is nothing to apologise for. Just be aware that whether or not you relied on your semblance, it was still your efforts that got you this far."

"All right, sappy stuff out of the way, can we talk about why Cadejo is so fluffy!" Ruby cried out, wrapping her arms around the wolf summon after having handed Weiss back the Soul Orb.

Jaune laughed, reaching down to give the wolf a rub under the chin. "I'm surprised you all are taking this so well."

"Shock, mostly," Ruby said, voice muffled by Cadejo's body as she pressed her face against the wolf summon.

"It is a rather unique semblance, that much is for certain. Is it too much to ask as to how you unlocked it?" Ren asked, moving to take a seat on one of the upturned logs.

"That's just it. One morning I didn't even have Aura, the next I had my semblance. No idea how, it just kinda happened," Jaune answered, shrugging.

"Odd. I haven't heard that many stories of awakened semblances, but they do tend to vary rather considerably."

Ruby nodded, agreeing with Ren. "Yeah. I found mine because I couldn't wait to get home, and I challenged Yang to a race."

"My win streak, ruined!" Yang drawled, oozing false melodrama.

"Says the girl who nearly burnt the house down with a temper tantrum!" Ruby fired back.

All eyes turned to Yang, who, for once, had the grace to look mildly embarrassed. "It's not what you think. Dad tried to cut my hair."

"Yang, you burst into flames. Dad didn't have eyebrows for like, months. Uncle Qrow couldn't stop laughing."

Nora's snort of laughter made Yang turn and glare.

Ren chuckled. "Your's isn't much better, Nora."

"Heh. Crazy Thursday."

"Wait, what?" Jaune asked, visibly confused.

"Oh, right, you don't know! Silly Ren! I got struck by lightning!" Nora exclaimed.

Jaune's dead stare didn't seem to be enough to prompt Nora to continue her explanation.

"Nora can absorb and redirect electrical energy. Her semblance has proven to be… explosive," Ren explained.

"Ah, right. That makes a bit more sense."

"Jauney, hit me with some lightning!" Nora exclaimed, interrupting any and all trains of thought the group had like an exploding railway.

"What?" Jaune asked, confused and surprised.

"Shoot me with your lightning stuff!" Nora repeated, jumping up and down, an excited gleam in her eyes.

"Uh… Okay?" Jaune uttered, before lifting his hand.

A _Lightning Infused Mana Bolt_ struck Nora in the chest, and she stumbled back a step, glowing slightly.

"Oh no," Ren muttered, stepping back, and Jaune noticed that Yang and Ruby were also backing up, the red-cloaked girl dragging Cadejo back with her.

The rest of AWBN, apt at recognizing danger, were also backing away, as Nora's very eyes seemed to crackle with electricity as lightning flowed through her veins.

Jaune watched in awe as she stepped close, a massive grin on her face. "Thanks, Jauney!"

Jaune had barely enough time to raise his arms as Nora wrapped him in a bear hug, and squeezed.

Even through his Aura Jaune felt ribs crack and the loud, audible snap of his spine splintering into two made the rest of the audience wince.

"Nora… Please…" Jaune groaned.

"Oh, sorry, right. Don't know my own strength, sometimes!" Nora said, a little bit abashed, but it didn't last for long as she released the poor blond and moved with speed that nearly rivalled Ruby, reaching the edge of the clearing and glaring into the forest that lay beyond. "Do you think there are many Grimm out there?"

Once Jaune had healed with _System Body_ , his HP having dropped nearly two hundred points from the hug, he responded. "None close, otherwise Cadejo would've sensed them. I can send Alcmena up, if you want me to search."

"I'm with Nora, I wanna see what our resident nerd can do when he's not holding back," Yang remarked, and Nora's frantic nodding was expression enough.

Alcmena, at the telepathic behest of Jaune, hopped once on Pyrrha's shoulder, leaping off and taking flight, soaring into the air for what was the most bird's eye kind of bird's eye view, as Jaune shot the blonde a look.

"Nerd? Really?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

"What else am I going to call you without it being obvious?" Yang replied.

"Jaune works. It's only my name," Jaune said, deadpan.

"Nah."

Jaune shook his head, before blinking. His eyelids closed over his normal eyes, and when they opened again, the glowing blue energy that escaped shocked RRYN.

Jaune began to relay what Alcmena could see to the assembled group, who, at Nora's behest, began drawing and checking their weapons.

"As far as Alcmena can tell, it's mostly Beowolves and Ursa, nothing majorly threatening. I mean, we've handled worse, at least."

Ruby cocked her scythe loudly, as more of a method of accentuating her point. "Well, what are we waiting for?"

Cadejo was the first to depart into the forest, and Nora was quick to follow the summon, pushing her way through the undergrowth, veins aflame with energy, her grin quickly reaching a point of manic excitement.

Behind her swarmed the rest of the large group, following the ecstatic valkyrie through the greenery.

They were soon to approach Grimm, not that it was all that difficult to find them. Low-level, too, from what Jaune could tell with a quick _Observe_.

Level 16, or so it seemed. Underleveled compared to him.

Now that Jaune thought about it, though, Jaune couldn't really remember the levels of his friends.

At his last check, almost six months ago, during the Initiation, Jaune had seen Weiss and Pyrrha's levels, at 11 and 16 respectively, and even before then, Blake had been level 13.

Now, though…

A rapid series of _Observes_ indicated the groups levels. Weiss, sitting comfortably at 16, Blake at 18 and Pyrrha at 21, rounding off AWBN, with Ruby at 17, Yang at 19, Nora at 18 and Ren at 16.

Aside from Pyrrha, they were all roughly around the same level, which Jaune was relieved to see. It was unsurprising that Pyrrha was the highest level, too. The champion had far more experience than any of the rest of them.

Jaune's attention strayed from the levels of his friends to watch as Nora initiated the fray, breaking through the treeline and smacking the nearest Grimm, an Ursa, with her hammer so hard it shattered into black mist.

The blond's eyes opened wide as she simply proceeded through the rest of the crowd of Ursa. Nora was unstoppable, or so it seemed, as she simply struck each of the clustered Grimm without a care for their wellbeing, which was acceptable, but still, it was a shock to the senses, pun not intended.

Each and every swing of her hammer was like the delivery of a payload yielding in the megatons, her veins alight with crackling lightning as she struck again and again without seeming to expend any effort, cackling all the while.

A growl from behind snapped Jaune from watching the spectacle as he realised that the Beowolves he'd seen had decided to use the distraction that Nora presented as cover to flank.

"Well, go on Jaune! Show off!" Yang exclaimed, giving him a hearty slap on the back, enough to push him into the forefront of the group.

Before Jaune could even prepare to fight, Cadejo sprung into action.

The wolf's jaws locked around the nearest Beowolf, the summon using its weight to tug it to the ground, and as Cadejo snapped its neck, Jaune moved into action.

Crocea Mors flickered through the air, cutting apart any Beowolf that dared get close, before the teen decided that, as Yang had requested, he would show off.

He maintained his grip on his shield as he sheathed his blade, and he conjured Mana into his hand, tossing out a _Mana Grenade_ at the grouped targets.

The explosion of Mana tore apart the blackened flesh of the Beowolves, and as Jaune prepared for a second _Mana Grenade_ , Cadejo snagged another Beowolf by the neck, dragging it into the bushes.

Jaune canceled the _Mana Grenade_ cast, and watched as a second, smaller Cadejo ripped the throat out of a different Beowolf, and another Cadejo snagged the leg of one that was nearby, two more Cadejo's biting down and killing it.

' _So that's what the Wolfpack perk is,'_ Jaune thought to himself, as he _Shield Bashed_ one of the Beowolves that had gotten to close, the stunned Grimm stumbling back, where he performed a _Finishing Blow_ , quickly and cleanly decapitating the lupine monster.

Jaune could hear gunfire behind him, and he took a quick glance to check, seeing his team and the rest of RRYN moving to support Nora, the group efficient and effective as always.

There were only a few Ursa left for them to kill, and as Jaune checked his opponents, he quickly realised that there were only two Beowolves left, one bigger and more plated than the other.

The alpha, Jaune knew. He didn't even have to _Observe_ the monster to know that. Jaune watched as the other Beowolf simply collapsed, bronze-coloured feathers sticking out from its upper back and head, already beginning to fade away like the other corpses that lay scattered around.

The Alpha Beowolf snarled, and Jaune's pack of Cadejo's snarled back, moving to stand behind the teen, at his behest.

Jaune was glad for his training in quickly drawing and sheathing Crocea Mors from his deployed shield, because it meant that he had enough time to sheath the blade, charge and fire a _Mana Pulse_ and redraw the sword before the projectile impacted, and he followed it quickly, almost but not quite being within the area of effect as it detonated, tearing chunks of flesh from the Alpha as he swung in, a _Mana Slash_ disarming it in the most literal sense.

The one-armed Alpha roared in agony, and Jaune kept up his approach, following the _Mana Slash_ with a flurry of blows, cutting away as the Alpha stumbled backwards under the onslaught.

And, finally, Jaune felled the Alpha Beowolf with a fast stab through the chest, plunging Crocea Mors deep into its body, the Beowolf snarling and snapping as it died, unable to deal any damage.

It began to disintegrate around his blade, parts falling off as whatever connected them faded into black mist.

Jaune withdrew his blade from the torso of the Alpha, all that remained of it, and sheathed it, stowing his sheath back on his belt.

He turned back to face the rest of the group, all staring at him. "Oh, you got the Ursa?"

Yang let out a whistle. "Damn, Jaune. You really did show off, huh."

Jaune watched as Cadejo's form shimmered and shifted, the other, smaller Cadejo's doing the same, but sliding and merging with Cadejo until only the original summon was left, who happily wagged his tail, tongue lolling out of his mouth. "You did ask me to."

Alcmena soared in from above, wings flapping as she landed on a branch overhead.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 163,200 XP!]**

 **[Level Up!]**

 **[You are now Level 21!]**

"So… did someone's wallet take a hit?" Yang asked, bending over to pick up a 10 Lien card, staring at it with a confused expression. Likewise around her, Ruby and Nora scanned the ground, finding other Lien cards sitting in little piles.

"Well, I did say my semblance makes my life like a video game. Monsters mean drops, so…"

"Jaune, I take it back. Your semblance is bullshit."

"Yang! Language!" Ruby admonished her sister, giving her arm a smack.

"Trust me, Yang, sometimes I can't help but be amazed at what it can do. Now, if we can all pick up all the drops, I'll split the Lien eight ways. Seems fair to me," Jaune said, as he reached down to gather the drops of the Alpha.

The group set about doing so, collecting the drops and consolidating them, Jaune doing a quick count. "Alright, so, the total Lien is 4480, split eight ways is 560. So, that's 560 Lien each, here."

Jaune outstretched his hand and pulled 560 Lien from his inventory, handing it to the nearest person, Ren, before repeating the process, until everyone was a little bit richer.

"What's the other stuff, Jaune?" Ruby asked, interested.

"Let's see…" Jaune began, checking through his inventory. "Two Beowolf pelts, one Ursa pelt, and an Alpha Beowolf Claw."

"Another thing about your semblance that seems to disagree with the rules that we know of. Grimm are supposed to disintegrate after death, and leave nothing behind," Ren mused.

Jaune shrugged. "At this point, I've stopped counting. Well, I never really started, but still."

"Question is, what can you do with it?" Ruby asked.

"Aside from using them as catalysts for summoning Bound Souls, I don't know. I'd assume there's a point to them. Maybe as some kind of crafting material?" Jaune said, stretching his arms. "Regardless, we should probably head back to Beacon. It's getting late, and Ruby and I have something to discuss with you all."

Ruby stared for a beat, before realising what Jaune meant. "Oh, right! The briefing! Let's go, Team RRYN! We can't let Team AWBN beat us back to Beacon!"

Almost like they had been planning it, the four members of RRYN sprinted off back in the direction of Beacon, leaving a confused but unsurprised team of four behind.

"Do we even try to catch up?" Pyrrha asked, and Jaune shook his head.

"Honestly, Pyrrha, I don't think we can."

* * *

 **I'm basing my unarmed combat knowledge on my minimal MMA training, so if I was wrong in any way, let me know. I was probably wrong, too, knowing me.**

 **As a note, I may be taking a week or two off for Christmas, so there may or may not be chapters after next week, for two weeks. There will be a chapter next week, though.**

 **Now, onto reviews!**

 **Rogue H. Dragoon: Man, now there's a leap in logic. 'Fraid not mate, no Jihan Han in Systema.**

 **Dragon Bone Z: Ooh, now wouldn't that be fun! I'm honestly loving the Bound Souls, as it gives me an excuse to add a fluffy dog that isn't Zwei.**

 **Master DK: Ah, good old shock and awe, and a distraction for the Red Reaper. Turns out fluffy wolves are all you need to make an easy distraction. As a serious note, there will be more in-depth discussion about it in the future, I just kind of suck with reveals like this. Always have done.**

 **SentinalSlice: Glad you looked up what Cadejo's were, I was seriously glad when I found out about them, they fit the legends of Beowolves rather well. Technically, Cadejo shares the name, but many of the traits are not shared. For example, he doesn't have goat hooves, because man is that fucking creepy.**

 **Xerzo LotCN: Much of the point of the seven on one fight was to establish that no matter how powerful Jaune is, he can still be overwhelmed and killed if he were to get into a fight like that. That's mostly the point of the System's balance that I've worked on. Sure, eventually Jaune could decimate all seven, but that's only if they stagnate in progress, as opposed to the learning they are doing constantly, which improves their approximate level.**

 **Slenderbrine: As always, your chapter titles far exceed my capabilities. And, as usual, I have no idea what I've called this chapter yet, but it's probably really dumb.**

 **LukeGaylRR: Considering the actual impact of Mana Impact, the comparison is not all that far off. Now I want to rewatch all the Marvel movies, damn it.**

 **jedimasterb10: I feel like Jojo fans always have more fun. I should really watch it, it seems to have garnered a rather impressive following.**

 **Adro-Sama: The doggo will continue to do dog-related things. Even without Yang and Ruby on her team, Blake's still not safe.**

 **TypedSomeWords: You are probably right, though at that point Jaune was still concealing his semblance, so we'll chalk it up to that and not my forgetfulness. Kinda seems a little like blood rain, doesn't it. Wait, what colour is Auburn, one sec... Oh, it's like a brown. Huh. Let's just not go there. Glad you enjoyed the conversation, it was hella fun to write. And the consolidation is planned, that's the next chapter, where they decide what to do as a group. I'm glad you like the way the update was implemented, as I didn't want it to serve as a massive change. A lot of the stuff I've had to change has been purely because it didn't work all that well, and wasn't balanced or even readable. Let's not even mention my atrocious XP system during the first chapter. Eesh.**

 **-names: Well, aren't you going to be happy when you realise that I've already pointed out it's going to be Lancaster. Later on, of course, can't just push it in with no respect for the characters.**

 **And that about does it for reviews this week, thank you all for stopping by!**

 **I should mention, just as a little reminder, I do have a Pa Treon, and I would appreciate any and all the support you wish to give, if you decide to!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	23. Obligatory Shopping Chapter

**Apologies for the shorter, later chapter this week. Life's been a little more busy than expected, and I've struggled with this chapter for an ungodly amount of time. I wanted to get it out, though, so I pushed through as best I could.**

* * *

Cramped space for eight people was something Jaune had been familiar with since his youngest sister had been born. Of course, over the years, the amount of people had fluctuated as his family flitted in and out of the home, but it was still a feeling Jaune had never forgotten.

So with all eight members of RRYN and AWBN inside AWBN's tidier dorm room, Jaune was hit by a mild feeling of nostalgia, mixed with amusement and, finally, a smidgen of pride. Jaune wasn't one-hundred percent sure of the last one, but that didn't matter.

What did matter was the eight of them had gathered for a reason, and seeing as Ruby was looking to him to start talking, it was about time he stopped reminiscing and started speaking.

"We're going after Roman Torchwick," Jaune said by way of introduction. "We need to stop him and the White Fang from whatever they have planned, and we're uniquely qualified to do so."

Jaune's thesis effectively caught the attention of the assembled group.

"So, Blake, you're our in with the White Fang. I know you've been looking, got anything?" Jaune asked, and the raven-haired girl nodded a single nod.

"Not all that much, but there is a big recruitment rally going down tonight, in the industrial sector. I can go in, see if there's anything I can learn in person," Blake said, from her seat on her bed.

"Alright, great. Weiss, do you think you can hit up the SDC, see if there's anything you can learn?"

"That was the intention. I'm certain I can at least get my hands on the damage reports, see if there's anything that can be learnt from cross-referencing them with potential targets," Weiss replied, making a note on her scroll as she did so. "I'll go to the Vale CCT tower this afternoon."

"Anyone else have any ideas?" Jaune asked, looking around the cramped room.

"I can go talk to a contact of mine, he's an information broker of sorts. I might be able to grab something on Roman, if I'm lucky," Yang said. "Don't know if he'll even want to talk, but it's worth a shot. He runs a nightclub in the downtown sector, I could use some backup if I go. He might want to fight me if I'm alone, but…"

Jaune nodded. "Okay, anybody else?"

"Nora and I will go and speak with the local police, see if they would be willing to share some of the details on their cases on both the White Fang and Roman Torchwick. I'm certain they'd be willing to take any help they could get, and it isn't if there's anything for them to lose if they recieve help from some Hunters-in-training," Ren said, Nora nodding alongside him fervently.

"Right, gotcha. AWBN, I don't think we should work as our usual partners for this," Jaune began. "Blake and Weiss have two different jobs to do, and having a Schnee in a White Fang rally sounds like the beginning of a terrible joke. Blake, would you rather take Pyrrha, Ruby or me?"

"No offense, but all of you stand out for various reasons. Pyrrha's well known, Ruby's too young looking, and too innocent. Jaune, you're probably my best bet, but at the same time, none of you are Faunus. You stand out," Blake said, brow creasing in thought.

"Is there any way to change that, or disguise myself in any way? I don't mean to ask this in any kind of offensive or insensitive way, but do Faunus have a way of telling between Human and Faunus?" Jaune asked.

"Besides the obvious visual lack of an animal trait, you would also lack many of the enhanced senses that Faunus possess. There might be a way to counteract that, with your semblance, but it isn't easy to fake an animal trait. Even those with hidden traits are subjected to enhanced scrutiny, but that's usually dissuaded when they reveal the trait," Blake answered, and Jaune hummed in thought.

"I don't think I can fake being a faunus, at least, not right now. I'd check with my semblance, but my bet is squarely on the 'cannot do that' side of the coin. We'll figure that out when it comes to it," Jaune said, before once more looking around.

"Well, if that's what's happening, then if Pyrrha wants, she can tag along with me. I'm pretty sure having her backing me up is a good enough show of force to scare Junior into doing whatever I want," Yang said, looking to the redhead.

"Of course, Yang. I'd be delighted to accompany you," Pyrrha said, a smile on her face. "So long as I can wear something that isn't my typical gear. I wouldn't want to be seen entering a nightclub, it might give my agent a heart attack."

"Well, yeah, of course. I wasn't going to wear my typical stuff anyways, can't go to a nightclub wearing the same thing twice in a row. That just isn't classy."

Ruby interrupted her sister before she could get started discussing the minutiae of nightclub etiquette. "Weiss, I'll go with you! I've always wanted to see the Vale CCT up close!"

"Ugh, fine. Just please, don't interrupt me when I'm speaking with the SDC. That could cause more problems than it's worth. The question is, Jaune, what are you going to be doing?" Weiss asked.

Jaune shrugged. "I'm not exactly the go-to guy for information gathering. Plus I'm not familiar with any of the White Fang, or Torchwick. I'll go into Vale with you guys and run some errands I've been meaning to do, and stay on guard. I can help coordinate and consolidate, and stay on-call in case of emergencies."

Weiss nodded. "That's… actually a smart idea. You and Ruby are our fastest movers, it makes sense to have one of you available, and seeing as you pack more of a punch than Ruby, it's logical for you to be the one on standby."

"You don't have to sound so surprised. I do have good ideas occasionally," Jaune muttered.

"So, when are you guys planning on going?" Sun asked, and Jaune turned to his fellow blond.

"I don't know, when are we plann-" Jaune began to answer, before stopping and performing one of the most comedic double-takes any witness had ever borne, well, witness to. "Sun!?"

"Hey. How's it going?" Sun said in greeting, his tail flailing in the air in what Jaune could only assume was a wave.

"How did you get up here, this is our dorm room?!" Weiss exclaimed, partially in shock.

"I do this all the time!" Sun replied, a grin on his face.

"You do what?!" Weiss shrieked.

"I climb trees all the time!" Sun amended, expression and tone not changing one bit.

"Well, I guess this solves our issue of only having one person attend the rally," Jaune remarked. "You in, Sun?"

"Sure! Just, uh, can we come in? It's a little cramped out here."

Once Sun and a new figure had climbed inside through the open window, the blond monkey-faunus turned and gestured to the new figure.

"So, this is Neptune, my partner!" Sun introduced, the blue-haired teen standing next to him giving a wave of greeting.

"Sup."

"Jaune, if you're going into town to stay on standby, you should take Neptune! He's been getting at me to show him around Vale for the past few days now, but this'll work too!" Sun said, practically shoving his snappily-dressed partner towards Jaune.

"I mean, sure. If Neptune is cool with it," Jaune replied.

"Yeah, man, that's cool. I figure that if Sun is diving into what could possibly be a dangerous situation, I should probably be here to bail his ass out like I always do," Neptune said, rolling his eyes towards his partner.

Jaune cracked a smile, before turning to the assembled group. "Alright, AWBN, RRYN, Sun and Neptune, we should get prepared. Good luck!"

* * *

"So, you from Vale?" Neptune asked as the two stepped off the airship.

"Nah. I'm from a town out in the boonies. What about you?" Jaune asked as he led the way, the two teens stepping one foot in front of the other as they walked down the sidewalk.

"Mistral. Sun's from Vacuo, but I'm pretty sure they got sick of him and lumped him on us. He's the leader of SSSN, our team back at Haven."

Jaune chuckled. "He always getting himself into trouble?"

"Oh, absolutely. He doesn't know how not to. Most of the time it's just messing around, but he has a penchant for helping people, and he isn't exactly shy. Besides, he literally stowed away on a ship to get here early. I think it's fair to say he and trouble share an open relationship."

Jaune openly laughed at that. "I assume he told you all about what happened with him and Blake, right?"

"Yeah. He swore me to secrecy, only he and I know on our team. I know that he helped the two of you out against Torchwick and the White Fang. I'm fine with helping out, hell, he didn't even ask me to," Neptune replied. "So, where we headed?"

"I'm in need of some new gear. Clothes, armor, that sort of thing. If you couldn't tell, I'm not exactly the best dressed Hunter ever, and I think it's about time I change that."

Neptune rubbed his hands together. "Oh, you're in for a treat. I've got an appreciation for appearances, if that wasn't clear. All we need to do is find a nice strip, and we can do some good old-fashioned male bonding."

Jaune quirked an eyebrow.

"I mean, look at me," Neptune said, gesturing to himself.

Jaune had to admit, the blue-haired teen knew how to dress.

"Touche."

"So, any ideas where to start?" Neptune asked.

"Commercial district, probably. I don't want to spend all my Lien, but I do want to get some decent Huntsman-quality clothing."

"I'm just glad I get to relax whilst Sun gets himself into trouble. I'm going to need all the rest I can get."

"You and me both, Neptune. I have a feeling tonight's going to be a long night."

* * *

Jaune realised that, in all his life, he'd never really shopped for clothes for himself. Sure, his sisters had dragged him along whenever they wanted to shop and didn't want to carry whatever they bought.

Being on the other side of the coin was an interesting perspective for Jaune. He could certainly say he appreciated Neptune's assistance, because otherwise he wouldn't have had any clue as to where to even start, and even less of any idea as to where to go from there, even if he managed to figure out where to start.

All in all, it was a pretty fair assumption to say that Jaune was not a very fashion-oriented thinker, unlike many of his peers.

Hell, even Sun dressed better than Jaune did, and the blond faunus barely wore anything.

Now was the time to rectify that, and as Jaune and Neptune stepped inside the first store they'd found that looked good enough, or at least looked good enough to Neptune's eyes, Jaune couldn't help but feel out of his depth.

Neptune was proving to be an excellent friend, despite Jaune barely knowing the guy, as he quickly gave Jaune a glance, before deciding exactly how they were going to proceed.

"Alright, so, your colours are white, blue, black, and a little gold and orange. Pretty good scheme, I'll give you that, stands out. So, grab some stuff that looks good, and we'll try and put something together," Neptune said, and Jaune nodded, starting to wander through the aisles as he glanced at the clothing racks, taking in the appearance of each item.

If Jaune hadn't already realised he was out of his depth, now would've been another point at which the revelation was most prominent.

Each item of clothing was, to his eyes, as different as it was the same, so many variations and alternate cuts of things blending together until Jaune realised that he hadn't moved from that one rack in at least a minute, though whether or not that was a long period of time for someone to look at clothes Jaune had no idea. Usually he just zoned out and nodded along at his sisters whenever they asked him a question.

Now that he was in the driver's seat, Jaune was quick to realise he didn't have a license.

Something caught his eye, and he grabbed it off the rack, eyeing it up and down. A coat, white on the outside and navy blue on the inside, and as Jaune let it drape over his arm, he noticed the twin points at the hem.

It looked nice, and appeared to be made of a high quality fabric, though what fabric was unknown to the teen.

So, one item down, Jaune decided that it was most probably a better idea to take stock of what he needed and what he didn't, though the list of what he needed far exceeded the list of what he already had.

So far, he currently had… gloves, and some arm wraps, and his belts.

So, Jaune needed a few more items. He couldn't keep wearing his ratty hoodie, jeans and sneakers forever.

The coat was nice, and not all that pricy, so he maintained his grip on it as he moved past the rack, investigating once more, deeper into the store.

His luck, whilst as a stat was barely more than average, seemed to be shining brightly this day, as he quickly found another item that caught his eye, though he'd had to wade through what appeared to be hot pink combat pants.

It appeared that this rack held all sorts of colors of combat pants, in fact, and as Jaune pulled out a deep navy pair, he heard someone approach from behind.

"Yeah, those are good. Here, this'll do nicely," Neptune said, handing Jaune a long-sleeved black top. "It's not as thick as your hoodie, but that's what the coat is for."

"Yeah, right…" Jaune muttered, taking the proffered shirt.

"Don't worry, I asked the clerk, all this stuff is Hunter grade, so it won't rip or tear unless you put it through some real punishment. Though, according to Sun, that might not be as far away as it is for a regular student."

Jaune laughed. "Trouble and I have difficulty keeping it strictly professional, that's all."

Neptune smiled at that. "Yeah, and trouble seems to have difficulty picking a partner. It keeps sleeping around."

The two broke into chuckles as Jaune made his way to the changing room. He entered one of the cubicles, and decided that it was too much effort to bother changing manually. With a quick access of his inventory, he unequipped his current clothes, but considering he didn't want to place the new clothing in his inventory, he quickly changed into them like a regular person, without the ability to instantly phase things in and out of existence.

And, once Jaune had gotten changed and looked at himself in the mirror, he had to marvel at how good the clothes looked. They were, unsurprisingly, the right size, and they fit with his gloves and armwraps, and his belts fit with pretty much anything, but as the coat-tails swayed slightly from the motion, he had to admit he looked good.

He opened the cubicle and watched as Neptune appraised the work they'd done. "Damn. That worked out way faster for you than it ever did me. Lucky."

Jaune chuckled at that. "I'd ask how long you took, but I'm afraid of the answer."

"Too long. I had to find what colors fit, too, so you can imagine. Turns out, having blue hair pretty much throws most of the standard colors out the window unless you want to clash like two drunk drivers playing chicken."

Jaune feigned a wince before stepping back into the cubicle and redressing himself, the reverse order of how he'd gotten changed, using his inventory to this time equip his old clothes.

"So, you getting them?" Neptune asked, and Jaune nodded as he exited the cubicle, stepping towards the cashier with a smile.

The woman at the desk returned the smile with a polite one, expectedly, and quickly rang him up. "That will be 1600 Lien, thank you."

Jaune hid the very real wince behind his smile, reaching into his pocket and discreetly withdrawing the Lien from his inventory, placing the cards into the cashier's outstretched palm.

The cashier nodded, her smile slightly more than just the polite one it had been previously, but Jaune was already leaving, Neptune in tow.

"That was a little more expensive than I had thought it was going to be," Jaune said, as the two stepped into the early evening air.

"High quality stuff always is. I'm honestly not surprised. What's next on the agenda, then?" Neptune asked as he looked around, taking in the sights of the unfamiliar cityscape.

Jaune hummed in thought, considering his options. "No one's called, so there's no trouble, and I do need to complete the ensemble." He motioned at the worn shoes he wore, and Neptune nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, I'd say so. There are a couple food places down the street, too, so you go get your boots, and I'll grab us a table, and we can start consolidating intel," The blue-haired teen said, and Jaune agreed, the two splitting up as they headed in their different directions.

It wasn't hard for the blond teen to track down a store that specialized in footwear, and as Jaune stepped inside, he noticed the distinct smell of leather. He was unsure whether or not it was a good smell or not, but he shrugged.

It wasn't as if the smell of the store determined his preference for shopping there, anyways.

Jaune wasn't here to browse for an hour, though, and he knew what he was after. The clerk was more than happy to help out, and within ten minutes Jaune walked out of the store, brand new black combat boots on.

It didn't take him long to find Neptune, either, the boy sitting at a noodle stall run by a man Jaune swore he'd seen before, but for the life of him the blond teen couldn't place him.

"Alright, I'm good for shopping for the next millennium. Any word from Sun?"

Neptune shook his head, still staring at his scroll as he absent-mindedly ate his noodles. "Nothing yet. What about you, any word from the girls?"

Jaune withdrew his scroll as a bowl of noodles was slid in front of him, and he gave the familiar elderly man a nod, before checking for messages. "One from Ren, saying they hadn't gotten any leads, the police are stumped. He also mentioned that he and Nora were headed back to Beacon before Nora caused anymore property damage."

"More?" Neptune asked, looking up and raising an eyebrow.

"It's safer if you don't ask."

At that, Neptune nodded. "Anything else?"

"Weiss has finished up at the CCT, but nothing of any note to report. Apparently, she hasn't had a chance to go over her 'preliminary findings' yet," Jaune continued, shaking his head slightly. "As for Yang and Pyrrha or Blake and Sun, nothing. Ruby's also conspicuously missing, but I think Weiss just forgot about her."

It was at this point that both Jaune and Neptune's scrolls rang.

* * *

 **Once again I apologize for nothing much happening, but at least we can drop right into a more significant event in the next chapter.**

 **Now, let's move onto reviews!**

 **Xerzo LotCN: Bear in mind that Jaune and co have been in Beacon for almost half a year at this point. That is how semesters work, at least over here in Australia. I'm not sure what it's like in other countries, I should probably investigate into that.**

 **Adro-Sama: A level is not an exact reading of skill, but of power. Technically, Jaune can overpower Pyrrha, but in a fight of pure technical skill, Pyrrha would most likely come out on top.**

 **jedimasterb10: Alright, you've convinced me. When I have some free time, I'll start watching, from the beginning. I can imagine this won't sap my life away for the next couple weeks.**

 **serialkeller: I won't spoil any future plans, sorry. The pairing has nothing to do with the decision though, whether or not Pyrrha does kick the proverbial bucket.**

 **Slenderbrine: Ironically, the moment the chapter went live I realised a much better name for it, but I don't like to change stuff once it's done. I also can't remember what I was going to call it, so just pretend I did say it, and call me smart and funny.**

 **MadJeager 00: Likewise. However, balance and certain relatively unknown limits do and will come into play.**

 **Duwang: Second person to recommend it to me, so you can rest easy knowing I'm starting to watch it. And, yes, skills are able to evolve, at certain thresholds. Each threshold changes, too, but the majority are at Level 100.**

 **And that about does it for reviews this week! Thank you all for stopping by!**

 **Before I go, I have to mention that there may not be a chapter next week or the week during Christmas, but if there is, consider it a holiday gift! I do need a break at some point, I've been writing weekly chapters for nearly four months now, and hoo boy does it weigh down on the whole creative process. Writer's block is a bitch, lemme tell ya.**

 **Also, I have a Pa Treon; AFatFlyingWhale, and a Twitter; fat_flying, so come check me out and support me if you want!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	24. Mechanical Menaces: Revengeance

**And we're back, baby! I took a break, feel refreshed as hell writing-wise, and am ready to write weekly once again! I definitely missed this, and you guys!**

 **This chapter's pretty long, our longest so far, hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Blake felt like it was perfectly reasonable to be frustrated, especially considering her current predicament.

Frustration, anger, a hint of sadness, and a whole heap of righteous fury were the whole feelings that flowed through her veins as she stared at the ginger-haired man, his suave clothing doing nothing to stem the tide of her mood.

Beside her stood a boy she wasn't overly familiar with, and yet already he'd flung himself into dangerous situations on her behalf. This made two, now. Two potentially life-threatening situations that the blond teen had thrust himself into without much care for the consequences.

Blake wasn't mad with him, though. She could have been, easily, but he didn't deserve it, not really, and that went doubly so if you considered the fact that the man that stood on the stage was a far more deserving target.

Though, now that Blake considered it, it seemed lately her life had been consistently interrupted and thrown off course by blond boys. First Jaune, now Sun. Why she seemed to attract somewhat flawed blonds was something that she was willing to bet she'd never figure out.

She just wished that Torchwick's speech would end. Honestly, he seemed to have a penchant for annoying most faunus, not just Blake, and if she looked to her side she would've noticed Sun drifting in and out.

He was dismissive, mildly racist and very much a bad person, but the White Fang worked with him, and the audience of potential recruits were starting to swing around on their opinion of him, some nodding in agreement as he complained about unfair governments or something. Torchwick had something on them, or someone had something on both the thief and the Fang, because Blake couldn't think of a reason as to why they would willingly work together. At the very least, the higher-up members of the White Fang weren't so easily swayed by smooth talk and a stylish jacket.

Adam wasn't so easily swayed.

Her attention snapped back to the criminal as he snapped his fingers, and both Blake and Sun stared as the sheet of fabric bearing the White Fang symbol that had been draped across the back of the stage as a kind of centerpiece swiftly fell to the ground.

"Ooh, that's a big robot…" Sun muttered, staring slightly agape at the metal behemoth that stood where the fabric had once been.

"How did he get that?" Blake whispered, an expression of shock underneath the mask they'd been given upon entry.

"As some of you may have heard, this right here," Roman began, giving the giant mech a tap, "is Atlas's newest line of defense against all the scary things in the world. And, thanks to my employer, we've managed to snag a few before they… hit the shelves."

Blake's ears perked up at the mention of 'employer', but as she couldn't exactly ask Roman to elaborate, she continued to listen.

"Now, many of your brothers and sisters have already moved down to our operation in the southeast. If you'd rather stay within the city, that's fine, but if you're truly ready to fight for what you believe in, this is the arsenal I can provide you. Any questions?"

That was it. A concrete lead, an actual, solid lead. Something Blake had been after for some time now.

Of course, the celebration could wait until after she and Sun were out of danger, and somewhere they could actually hear one another, because the cheering of the White Fang, both new recruits and soldiers, was deafening.

"Would all recruits, please come forward!" A voice shouted, and Blake gave Sun a look.

"We need to get out of here," Blake whispered.

"Yeah, I'm all for that plan, but…" Sun began, before subtly gesturing towards Torchwick, who was scanning the room. "What are we gonna do?"

"I'm thinking!" Blake whispered back, urgency entering her voice.

"He sees us!" Sun whispered as Torchwick tossed his cigar to the side, stepping closer.

Blake continued to scan the room as Sun gave a nervous wave at the approaching thief, and it wasn't long until Blake had a plan. "He can't see in the dark."

Gambol Shroud kicked back as it fired, the bullet streaking through the air and into the electrical box on the far side of the warehouse, sparks flying as the entire building was plunged into near pitch-black darkness.

Screams and shouts replaced the cheers as Roman shouted. "Don't let them get away!"

Blake and Sun were already moving, shoving through the barely visible bodies as they ran. "Sun, the window!"

Breaking out of a warehouse full of hundreds of White Fang was the easiest part of Blake's night.

The hardest part was going to be outrunning the giant mech that followed the two of them out of the warehouse by breaking through the wall without seeming to expend any effort.

"I hope you've got backup!" Sun shouted as he sprinted, leaping over a car in an attempt to maintain his speed.

"On it!"

* * *

Jaune and Neptune were already on the move, both pushing Aura into their legs as they ran, though whilst Neptune's was a typical movement technique learned in the final year of Signal and it's non-Valean equivalents, Jaune was simply using _Sprint_ to cover the ground.

Blake had sounded the proverbial alarm with significant urgency, and Jaune suddenly stopped caring about the ins and outs of trust, simply equipping his new gear as he ran, hoping Neptune would be too busy to notice the change of attire.

According to Jaune's scroll, Blake wasn't far from him and Neptune, but it was still a decent distance to cover on foot.

A couple minutes, at most. He just hoped Blake and Sun could last with whatever it was that was… heading… this… way?

Blake and Sun were headed his way, but according to the map he had on his scroll, they were nearly fifty feet above him, and a little to the left.

Jaune looked up as he ran, and noticed the freeway overpass that continued along the skyline.

It only occured to Jaune now just how vertical much of Vale was, at least on this side of it.

"Neptune, we need to get up there!" Jaune called out, and Neptune looked up to where Jaune was looking.

"Any ideas?" Neptune asked in return, as he kept pace.

"A couple," Jaune answered. "But most of them aren't gonna get you up there too."

Neptune nodded. "Go, then, I'll catch up!"

Jaune didn't waste any time agreeing or disagreeing, simply congealing Aura into his legs and firing a _Jump_ , launching up towards the overpass.

He flipped in midair and his feet pressed up against the underneath, and he quickly cast _Surface Walk_ , the Mana drain negligible. It was only a few steps until Jaune reached the upright surface, where _Surface Walk_ automatically decast, and Jaune quickly spiraled backwards as a car shot past him at incredible speed, the driver wearing a frantic expression.

Jaune looked towards where the car had come from, and it was no coincidence that it was the same direction as where Blake and Sun were coming from.

Jaune could see the two sprinting their way towards him, and behind them, he could see a giant grey metal robot, mechanical feet pounding the road as it beared down on his friends.

Jaune sighed. Nothing was ever straightforward nowadays.

* * *

Pyrrha had, in all her life, never ridden on a motorbike, let alone one like Bumblebee. Yang seemed to have modified the bike to a point where it was unbelievably fast, and tough too.

Pyrrha had seen most of Mistral, travelled Atlas, stayed in Vacuo for a short time, and ventured into Vale many a time over the course of her life as her career as a tournament fighter had her compete in at least a hundred different competitions and tournaments across all Remnant.

She'd flown in airships, been driven in luxury cars, and even travelled Atlas in a luxury train, and yet not at any point had she enjoyed the ride as much as she did now, clinging to the blonde brawler's midsection as the two shot along the road, heading towards Blake's distress call.

Yang was gunning the throttle hard, and the two swerved in and out of traffic as they closed in on the location, Yang giving the steering a quick adjust as the two turned onto the on-ramp, gaining air as they shot up onto the overpass.

Pyrrha leaned to see over Yang's shoulder, and ahead the redhead could see why Blake and Sun needed help.

"Yang, over there!" Pyrrha shouted, needlessly pointing towards the giant robot that pursued their two Faunus compatriots.

Yang didn't respond verbally, but she sped up, gaining ground quickly.

Then, the two of them noticed Jaune leap over the side, standing in the distance.

"Yang, get us close! I can leap aboard!" Pyrrha shouted once more, and this time, Yang responded.

"I'm going as fast as I can, Pyr! That thing's got some torque to it!" Yang shouted back, even as they slowly gained on the hulking metal behemoth.

Pyrrha drew her blade, switching its form to her rifle, and leveled it, balancing precariously on the back of Bumblebee, even as Yang steered around an upturned hatchback.

Pyrrha took a deep breath, and fired as she exhaled, the bullet leaving the chamber and rocketing down towards her target, where it impacted against the metal plating of the robot.

The first round didn't do all that much, but the subsequent rounds that found their target at least alerted the target to their presence.

And so, one of the bulky metal blocks rotated, and fired a missile at the bike that the two girls were riding.

Yang's eyes widened as Pyrrha reacted first, reaching a hand out and concentrating, forcing her Aura to amass around the projectile.

Pyrrha's semblance took control of the missile, but even she was struggling with anything but deflecting it to the side, redirecting the missile.

It hit hard, a plume of fire and smoke sending chunks of road flying as Pyrrha and Yang shot past, still gaining ground on the mech.

Then Jaune hit it.

* * *

Jaune had learned something rather interesting about _Mana Pulse_. He could charge Mana into it, and keep charging it, until it reached a point where it had absorbed all 600MP he had at his disposal.

So when Jaune released it at the approaching mech, the immense orb of Mana shot past Sun and Blake and hit directly.

The explosion of Mana was immense, and though the mech seemed to survive the direct impact, the overpass most certainly did not, and Jaune felt the ground crumble beneath his feet as the entire structure collapsed.

Jaune fell, as did the mech, Blake, Sun and Bumblebee, the two riders clutching to the bike as they too plunged downwards.

The group landed hard, as the impact of the mech made the ground shudder, but to their credit, they recovered quickly.

Unfortunately, to Roman's credit, he also recovered as fast. Jaune was a little mad at that, but to be fair, he hadn't exactly expected the man to be a pushover.

Luckily, Jaune wasn't alone.

The crack of a 50 caliber sniper rifle firing echoed throughout the distance, and Jaune watched as the bullet impacted against the metal plating of the mech, hammering a large circular dent into the plate.

A blue torrent of what looked like plasma followed it up, and finally a series of blue spikes of energy spiralled in, striking the plate hard enough to finally dislodge it from the robot.

Ruby, Neptune and Weiss had arrived, and from the look on Ruby's face, she wasn't happy with Torchwick.

Jaune almost pitied the man. Almost.

* * *

Roman was pissed.

It was a reasonable state of mind to be in, to be honest, considering how his night had gone so far.

Those two brats from the docks had snuck their way into the White Fang rally, and then that third one had arrived just as he was chasing those two down.

Then a third and a fourth had arrived, and Roman had tried to dissuade them of their heroic notion with one of the Paladin's missile racks, but that hadn't gone smoothly either.

Of course, then that blond boy from the docks had done whatever it was that his semblance allowed him to do, and blown up the damn overpass, and sent them all plunging down to the ground.

And, to top it all off, the kid's friends had shown up. One he recognized, too. Little Red.

Tonight just really wasn't working out for him.

Of course, Roman wasn't planning on quitting. Bailing, maybe, but at least he'd get to have a little bit of stress-relieving fun, courtesy of these interruptive brats.

There was, of course, Cinder's request (or rather order, but Roman wasn't planning on complaining to the woman with the fire powers. That way lead a painful, fiery death that he wasn't particularly keen on.) to study the blond boy's abilities in detail. According to that red witch, her employer was interested in the potential the boy might possess. Of course, he'd been slated with the job, and Neo was proving to be her typical self as usual, too lazy to bother snooping on some teenage kid with an atypical semblance.

At least, not without a hefty bribe to get her pretty ass of his couch and actually help him out.

Due to a significant portion of this inner monologue, Roman turned his attention to said blond teen, and prepped one of the Paladin's many armaments. This would also prove a point to any witnesses that Roman, and subsequently the White Fang, were a threat to be taken seriously, not some tabloid nonsense.

Though there had been many a good tabloid title in his past. 'Roman's Rampage' stuck out as one of his earliest, but that wasn't to say there weren't better.

The snappily-dressed ginger gave his head a quick shake to clear it of the temporarily unimportant thoughts as he dedicated his mind towards attempting to eliminate the majority of his recent nuisances with swift, high-caliber, explosive justice. Or anti-justice, or whatever the opposite of justice was.

' _Not important now, Roman. Focus.'_

Each hand of the Paladin mech rotated, revealing guns of immense size, and watched carefully, neither side willing to make the first move outside of announcing their presence.

The blond boy was the leader, too. Roman could tell, the group seemed to unconsciously glance towards him as he stared the thief down, even through the thick metal plating of the cockpit's hull.

Already a notch up from most first-year teams, working together in a group of eight.

Roman cocked the gun-hands menacingly, and prepared to fight, his smirk nowhere near out of place on his face.

* * *

Jaune's attention was split between Roman, piloting the massive mech, and the notification box that had popped almost immediately after he'd landed.

 **[The System has had a minor update!]**

 **[Combat 1.1 has been introduced!]**

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Vigilantism**_ **]**

 **[Defeat Roman Torchwick.]**

 **[Rewards: 30,000 XP, Skill Book]**

Jaune wasn't one-hundred percent sure what Combat 1.0 had been, or what Combat 1.1 entailed, but so far his semblance had proven to be only beneficial, so Jaune was optimistic.

He kept an eye on the robot as he checked through the notification, but all it was was the two lines, no explanation.

Jaune frowned slightly, but his attention was soon snapped away from the notification and towards Torchwick as the mech's hands shifted into guns, giving Ruby what Jaune could only assume was significant inner conflict, especially considering he recognized that gleam in her eye.

It was like Yang and her bike, or Weiss and her schoolwork. Jaune suppressed a shudder as the last thought past through his head, and he readjusted his grip on his blade.

This was a textbook Vacuon standoff, without a doubt, and now they stood all waiting for someone to make the first move.

Jaune decided to take advantage of the momentary peace to _Observe_ the mech that Roman piloted, and his eyes widened almost comically as he read, shock etched into the lines of his face as obvious as marker pen at a sleepover.

Even if Jaune were to put more thought into the previous analogy, which he quite obviously wouldn't, he would realise that whilst not the most accurate, it was certainly something he was experienced in, at least being on the receiving end. Jaune knew his sister's enjoyed a good prank, and he was almost always the easiest target.

Of course, Jaune hadn't put any more thought into the analogy, so all of that was effectively pointless, as his attention was far more drawn in by what caused the analogy in the first place, and the gold crown that floated ominously next to its name.

 **[Boss]**

 **[Atlesian Paladin-290 (Prototype)]**

 **[Robot, Level 25]**

 **[HP: 24,525/28,125]**

Jaune had to admit that that was a lot of HP. It was, more accurately, a roughly ten times his current HP total.

Sure, he had seven people to back him up, but that was kind of beside the point.

This was, without a doubt, not going to be an easy fight. Unless whatever this Combat 1.1 update changed or added made him do roughly ten times the amount of damage he currently did, but he doubted it.

He also realised that this was not a Grimm. This was a robot piloted by a man Ozpin himself had warned him about, and Jaune realised a little too late that he was not going to be able to pass off his abilities as Aura if he went all out.

At least, not to Roman. If it were a weaker, dumber person, maybe, but Roman hadn't made it this far in life without being a cunning backstabbing thief with intelligence, and cunning. Jaune had already mentioned cunning, but considering the quote-unquote gentlemanly thief's reputation, he figured it deserved mentioning twice.

Maybe a third time was stretching it though, so Jaune filed that away for later, when it wouldn't seem like he was simply repeating himself in order to stall for time to regenerate whatever MP he had left to recover.

He was, of course, but that was beside the point.

The fully charged _Mana Pulse_ had dealt what looked to be a little over three and a half thousand damage, so at least they had a minor starting advantage.

Something in the side of his vision triggered whatever reaction in his brain to draw his attention, and Jaune spared a glance to his friends, or more accurately, a glance at the hovering boxes above their heads.

The boxes seemed to act as temporary _Observe_ notifications, as each read their respective names and meters, floating above their heads without the owner's knowledge.

This seemed to be a part of the Combat 1.1 update, and it was certainly useful, but at the moment, Jaune was more concerned about the large caliber rounds that spat out of the gun-hands, which just so happened to be aimed his way.

This was, without a doubt, the end of the stand-off, and Roman had made the first move.

Jaune brought his shield up as fast as he could, bracing his other arm behind it as the rounds hit, and even still the power behind them was enough to drive him backwards, feet sliding over concrete as they struggled to find enough purchase to prevent him from gaining even more distance.

This was, however, a brilliant indication that his friends should move into action, and that was exactly what they did, opening fire with the immense variety of weaponry they had at their disposal.

The armor plating of the mech seemed to withstand the barrage, but Roman was not changing his target, simply tanking the fire and maintaining his veritable stream of gunfire, and Jaune felt like he was about to buckle, his shield taking bullet after bullet.

There was no way the shield would be able to withstand every single bullet the mech had in its possession, so Jaune _Dodged_ to the side, rolling as Roman rotated, but Jaune kept moving, just barely managing to stay ahead of the torrent of bullets that splintered concrete all around him, the blond teen strafing as fast as he could in an effort to avoid the rounds.

He kept his shield up and facing the oncoming fire, in case Roman managed to actually effectively aim, but it seemed the man was struggling a little with the controls. That, or the mech didn't have the capability to rotate as fast as Jaune was running.

Of course, this strategy relied on the mech not doing exactly what it started to do, as it reaffirmed its position and unfolded plates, more guns emerging from its frame, red lasers tracking as many of them as it had guns, maintaining its aim on them with mechanical proficiency.

These guns were, thankfully, smaller than the larger caliber weapons that the robot's hands shifted into, but still, a gun was a gun, and this thing was built to take out large Grimm, so Jaune didn't feel to confident in many of his friends taking a direct hit without losing a pretty hefty amount of Aura.

The multiple guns opened fire as Roman maintained his aim on Jaune, and soon Jaune was not the only Hunter-in-training who was doing their best to avoid incoming fire. Ruby, Pyrrha, Neptune and Weiss all suddenly had to break off their fire and join Jaune in dodging the bullets as they tore channels into the concrete.

Yang, somehow not picked as a priority target of the four smaller machine-guns, charged in quickly, joined by Blake, and the two struck at its left leg, Blake's blade cutting into the steel and Yang's sheer concussive force simply damaging anything on the inside of the plating with the vibrational power she sent into the leg. Sun went after the right leg, him and two glowing, gold, semi-translucent versions of himself hitting the mech's right leg with their staffs, the two clones exploding into a burst of gold mist after their third successive hit.

It didn't do all that much to the mech, or at least that was how it looked to all of them, but to Jaune he could tell they were at least contributing more than he was at that moment. The mech's HP had dropped from 24,525 to 23,900, which was good, but it appeared to be pretty resistant to physical damage, courtesy of its armored plating, so it would take some time before they did any significant damage.

So, Jaune realised that it would probably be a good idea to come up with a better plan to enact, because at the moment 'hit it a bunch' didn't appear to be working. Or at least, in a battle of attrition, Jaune had no doubt they would lose.

Jaune watched as the mech rotated targets, now firing at the three who'd attacked its legs, and as Blake, Yang and Sun made to move out of the way, Neptune, Ruby and Weiss were freed from the barrage.

Jaune decided to try something a little different. ' _Robots didn't like electricity, right?'_

He needed something subtle, though. Anything obvious would draw Roman's attention even more than he already had.

"Weiss! I need some cover!" Jaune shouted, and Weiss was quick to understand, planting the tip of Myrtenaster into the ground and urging her Aura to flow through the Ice Dust crystal that sat amongst the variety of Dust in its hilt.

The ground quickly and rapidly began to coat in a thick layer of ice, and whilst the robot quickly countered the potentially slippery terrain with spikes from its feet, the Atlesian-developed mech unsurprisingly capable of handling ice, Weiss called out.

"Yang, smokescreen!"

They hadn't all been doing nothing for their entire time at Beacon. Yang simply nodded and leaped into the air, cocking her fist back and bringing it forward as she landed, slamming a Fire Dust round of buckshot into the densest part of the ice.

The reaction was instant, and steam rose from the ice, effectively coating the area in a barely transparent cloud of cover.

The lasers from the robot struggled to make out the shapes of its targets through the cloud, and as they struggled to trace what it assumed was movement, the pilot inside the mech swore, eyes scanning across the screen in an attempt to see his target, who'd effectively disappeared into the almost-smoke.

Jaune, amidst the mist, could make out the darkened position of the robot, and he quickly congealed Mana, focusing it. He cast a _Lightning-Infused Spinning Mana Bullet_ , and watched as the five rounds spat out the end, each dealing, according to the little temporary boxes that appeared as quickly as they disappeared, 108 damage.

Another box popped up, but this one was a little more interesting than damage numbers. This one indicated that Jaune had stunned the robot. He didn't know for how long, but he could tell that it had at least worked, as the lasers simply stopped tracking, flickering brighter and dimmer.

The guns had stopped firing whilst the automated system attempted to reacquire a firing solution, but now the system on the inside had stopped working completely, and inside the mech, Roman was stuck, controls not responding and the interior lights failing completely, plunging the thief into near-pitch black darkness, lit only by the faint dim of the screens that simply read 'catastrophic system failure', a blinking exclamation mark serving to indicate further that something had gone wrong.

Roman was quick to reboot the system, and he watched as the booting process' progress bar slowly but surely crept towards one-hundred percent.

Jaune could see the mech's HP sitting at 23360, and considering it had cost 65 MP to cast, Jaune was confident that he could keep the mech stunned, and deal enough damage to eventually destroy the mech.

The problem was if he did that, Roman would definitely suspect something, and the most suspicious person would be him, without a doubt.

He'd bought them all some time, though, which would have to be good enough.

"It's stunned, hit it as hard as you can!" Jaune shouted, and Yang took that as a personal challenge as she shot forward, fist cocked, a wild haymaker striking the cockpit plating with significant force, tearing the spikes from the ground and sending the mech onto its side, denting the plating hard enough that Roman could see the fist imprint in the metal on the inside of the mech.

Ruby arrived next to Weiss in a burst of rose petals, and a quick half-second conversation had the two agreeing on an idea, and as Ruby buried the pointed blade of Crescent Rose into the ground to anchor her, Weiss created a glowing black glyph in front of the barrel.

Jaune could see the tip of Ruby's tongue stick out the side of her mouth as she carefully aimed, and then a combo of rounds exited the barrel as the red-themed girl fired, the bullets passing through the glyph.

Jaune had expected some kind of Dust manipulation to imbue the rounds with fire, or ice, or even lightning, but the rounds that escaped the glyph were imbued with something else, as they left a glowing purple trail behind.

As the rounds impacted, it was almost like each bullet was a portable Yang punch, the metal caving under the onslaught as the gravity-imbued rounds hit with the force of a small meteor, the last actually hitting hard enough to launch the mech into the air slightly, sending the metal monstrosity grinding backwards a couple feet with the typical metal screech that accompanied most metal-on-concrete sounds.

They'd done a pretty hefty amount of damage, but their stunning reprieve was over, as the mech swiftly clambered to its feet, every single weapon rack and turret activating and pointing towards them.

It was down to 16,425 HP, but that was still more HP than Jaune could deal, even with a fully charged _Lightning-Infused Mana Pulse_. Though that was partially because the skill was a low level. He really needed to work on leveling his skills.

Then the mech unleashed a barrage of missiles at the group.

* * *

Jaune only had a moment to think of a plan. They couldn't dodge these, they were too powerful, and too fast. He couldn't throw up a _Mana Field_ , it wasn't big enough to protect everyone, but even if he did, it'd reveal him to Roman.

He couldn't shoot them out of the air for that same reason, and also because there was no way he was that good of a shot.

Before he could think of a feasible idea, and though he might've been able to, at the rate they were going there was no chance that was going happen in time, Blake and Weiss leaped forwards.

A glyph appeared beneath Blake, and the sound of clockwork was heard.

A split-second passed, and Blake appeared to move like a black and violet blur, her Aura flaring in various ways as she cut through the missiles from where she stood.

The splintered explosives hit the ground around them, some exploding, some simply thudding into the ground, fuses and detonators damaged irreparably.

And the only injury appeared to be Weiss, though hers was less of an injury and more of simple exhaustion, having depleted a pretty considerable amount of Aura on that glyph. Blake was quick to support her, helping her to their rear line, where she was in at least a modicum of cover.

Roman was out of missiles now, which was good, but he wasn't out of bullets, far from it, and as those damned turrets re-locked their targets, Jaune let out a frustrated sigh.

' _For once, I wish a fight could just be easy. Or, better yet, they just surrender!'_

Then, Jaune had an idea. ' _We don't need to destroy the robot. We just need to stop Roman from piloting it!'_

This was, of course, far easier in saying than it was in doing, which, as expected, was typical of much of Jaune's planning thus far in life.

And, to top it all off, the idea was excellent, it was the concept of exactly how to execute that plan that was proving to be rather difficult.

A second passed as he swerved behind a support pillar, the rounds thudding into the concrete serving to provide evidence that his cover was only temporary, but he took it as the required reprieve he needed to formulate an idea.

Which was a lot of big words to say Jaune didn't have much time.

' _The smokescreen worked, but it's temporary, very temporary. We can only get one or two quick hits in, and even then that was when it was stunned. Roman will expect it a second time, so there's no sense in trying it again, not at least without a distraction, or some other way of pulling it off. If Yang goes up again, he's going to swat her out of the sky.'_

Jaune could hear the rounds chipping away at the pillar, and he winced as one passed right by his head, through a space his cranium had occupied only moments before.

He had to think faster.

' _Crap, okay, think Jaune, think! Gods, anything would be better than nothing right now!'_

Another bullet passed by, closer this time, behind his head now. It was keeping him pinned.

' _Why can't I think of anything!'_

Jaune was starting to panic, but the influx of calm that he felt from _System Mind_ felt both alien and familiar, and he relaxed, though not of his own volition.

Honestly, Jaune realised, there wasn't much he could actually do without throwing his hand down on the table and showing his cards. An ace up the sleeve was useless when all four aces had been played already. All it would do was tip Roman further into the suspicious mindset, and having an expert criminal suspecting you of foul play was not something Jaune wanted to have to deal with.

That was, of course, assuming they made it out of this alive.

At the moment, it wasn't looking too good.

Thankfully, Jaune was not the only person considering their options.

"We need to slow it down, and then swarm it from every angle!" Ruby shouted, and the group were quick to agree. Jaune was thankful Ruby had at least some kind of plan. But, much like with Jaune's plans, it was easier said than done.

Weiss was low on Aura, they were pinned by gunfire, and there wasn't much of a way to break that cover, unless they wanted to take some hits.

' _Well, I couldn't come up with an idea, so I might as well do something useful!'_ Jaune thought to himself as he braced against his shield and left the relative safety of his poor, poor pillar.

Dust rounds hit his shield one after another, and Jaune could hear the poor protective device groan in dismay as metal began to slowly but steadily dent, the pockmarking accuracy of the auto-turrets doing their absolute best to his the shield's weakpoints, at the mecha-shifting seams.

The shield was going to need some serious maintenance after they were done, but for now it would just have to withstand the onslaught, as Jaune got closer and closer.

This was the point that Roman, frustrated and uncomfortable, directed all four auto-turrets to fire upon the poor teen, and Jaune could feel his teeth rattle in his head as each round pounded in a four-point staccato rhythm.

He knew that if he did make it out of this, he was also going to have a killer headache. It almost felt like someone was going at his spinal cord with a jackhammer, each blow sending reverberations throughout his entire body.

 _System Body_ was doing nothing to help, as it wasn't an injury, but he resolved himself by remembering that if he did get injured, he'd heal much quicker, and much more painlessly, than any of his friends.

Roman realised that Jaune wasn't planning on backing down, and opened fire with the main guns as well, only to discover that they were out of ammunition. He swore, and took a step forward, guns changing back to fists for the first time during the fight.

The mech would back, fist cocked, but it wasn't the metal fist that struck first.

A blast of ice struck the mech hard, freezing its left leg into place, and as Roman realised, he tried to escape, but the second blast struck the mech in the other leg, effectively freezing it in place.

The auto-turrets continued their onslaught on Jaune, unfortunately for the blond teen, but the rest of his friends were at least using that to their advantage. Yang leaped forwards with a wound-back arm, but Roman at least had the use of his arms, and he quickly smacked her out of the air, knocking her through the pillar Jaune had previously been using as cover.

Weakened or not, Yang went straight through without so much as a complaint from the withered architecture, and more than one person gasped in shock.

Ruby, surprisingly, wasn't worried. "Don't worry, her semblance will kick in. The more she takes, the more she can dish out!"

Shocking absolutely no one, Ruby was right. Yang stood up, hair glowing gold, eyes similarly glowing, although a more blood-red color, she covered the distance between where she'd landed and the mech with remarkable speed, and simply parried a wild strike Roman had sent her way, her fist meeting the mech's with sheer power that Jaune hadn't realised she even possessed.

What should've been a broken arm, Aura or no, was quickly reversed, as the metallic fist of the robot simply appeared to disintegrate under the force Yang seemed to emit. Even Jaune could tell that Roman's eyes widened at the sight, though no one could actually see into the cockpit.

Of course, Yang was going to need a little more than her strength to completely destroy the mech.

What she needed was momentum, and Blake was quick to help her out, black ribbon streaking across the sky and landing in Yang's grip. Sun helped Blake out, too, the two lending their considerable combined strength to swing Yang in a dangerous orbit.

Roman began to panic, jostling the controls every-which way in an attempt to extricate himself from the ice, but it was to no avail, and as Yang's closed fist met the cockpit, fitting perfectly into the dent she'd already made, everyone watched in amazement as the mech seemed to just split apart, sending chunks of what was now effectively scrap metal all around, including one sensor that had just attempted the first ever unmanned space program.

Roman, however, rolled to his feet, Aura crackling as he healed the somewhat-minimal injuries he had sustained over the course of the fight.

"Well, that was a very informative little fight we've had, ladies and gentlemen, but this is where we call it a night. Thanks for the fun, especially you, blondie, you were a real treat. Take care!"

Roman finished his little tirade with a bow, and Yang, uncaring for either the nickname or the implication, rushed forward, eyes still red, and hit Roman across the jaw.

Roman copied the mech rather well, splintering into a million pieces, though this was more of the glass variety.

"Shit!" Yang spat, panting, fists clenched tight.

Jaune attempted to sheath his sword, managing to place the blade in but finding the catch stuck when he tried to shift the shield from shield to sheath, so he just stowed it on his back. "It's not the first time he's pulled that trick, Yang. We'll get him next time, when he doesn't have a giant mech."

The rest of the group approached, glancing around.

"So, that was a thing," Ruby said, stowing Crescent Rose on her back.

"Yeah. No offense, guys, but it seems like every time I hang out with you, we get into life-threatening danger," Sun quipped, a smile on his face.

Blake looked far more somber. "I had hoped the White Fang we'd faced at the docks were a splinter-group, but it appears I was wrong. It's frustrating. We managed to get some information, but it nearly cost us our lives."

Weiss placed a comforting hand on the back of her partner. "At least we managed to get something. I would hate for all of this to be a waste, especially considering the repair costs."

Jaune scratched the back of his head guiltily at the last point. "Well, we should probably get out of here. If we're still here by the time the police get here, we're not going to have a great time. Besides, I could use a couple hours of sleep. Or a couple days."

Yang, having seemed to revert back to her usual temperament and eye-color, nodded. "Yeah, I've had enough experience with trashing places to know they won't be happy to hear I've broken something else. Or someplace else, I guess. Besides, if Dad finds out, he's gonna be mad."

Ruby paled. "Sis, whatever you do, never mention this to Dad. He worries enough as it is."

"I just hope they are still running the airship back to Beacon. I don't fancy the climb at the moment," Pyrrha remarked.

Eight pairs of eyes exchanged glances, and then the owners of the eyes began to panic, speeding up as they began to leave, eventually running towards the shuttle port as fast as they could.

Climbing the Beacon Cliffs this late at night, after such a fight?

Jaune would rather just get shot a bunch again.

* * *

Good news was, there was still an airship to Beacon.

Bad news, not everyone was as tired as Jaune was. And Jaune was very, very tired. Not tired enough for a point of exhaustion, but so close Jaune swore that any minute the debilitating effect would come into play.

Of course, adding to his exhaustion was the questions that he kept getting.

"Yes, Ruby, it's a new outfit. Just like the last time I said that."

Ruby, along with the majority of his friends, kept their eyes on him, taking in the new clothing.

"I have to admit, noodle-boy, you clean up pretty well when you aren't wearing whatever that crap you had before was."

Jaune gave Yang a deadpan stare. "Thanks, Yang, that really means a lot coming from you."

Yang played the mock-offended card. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"I don't know, it just doesn't seem fitting to be getting fashion advice from a girl who barely wears clothes," Jaune replied.

Yang shrugged. "Hey, I know what I've got, and I know how to use it."

"I'd say you were a little bit full of yourself, but you'd take that as a compliment."

Weiss interjected before their verbal sparring took up any more of her time. "I do agree with Yang, though this is a rare occurrence. You do look much more professional dressed like a Hunter, not like you'd woken up homeless two weeks ago."

"Wow, Weiss, thanks. You have a way with words, really makes me feel loved."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "You know what I meant. You are insufferable, you can't even take a compliment."

"Uh, Weiss, I don't think that was a compliment," Ruby whispered, nudging the white-themed girl for good measure, who responded with her traditional icy glare, to which Ruby seemed to be immune to. Prolonged exposure, most likely.

"We're landing," Blake spoke up, and the group stood up, stretching sore muscles.

"We're probably going to get reamed by Goodwitch, you know that, right?" Yang said casually, as if the statement didn't trigger everyone's flight-or-fight responses.

Jaune released a deep sigh, hanging his head. "Yeah. Well, it was my idea. You all just tagged along to make sure I didn't get myself killed."

Blake's head snapped up to look at her leader. "What? Jaune, you can't-"

Jaune interrupted her with a half-hearted wave of his hand. "That's the story, Blake, stick to it. Easier for me to take it, anyway. If anything, I can tell the headmaster why it was necessary."

"Jaune…" Pyrrha began, but Jaune cut it off with a even more half-hearted smile.

"Don't worry, Pyrrha. We stopped a White Fang rally, gathered important information, and stopped a possible terrorist attack. At least we've done some good."

"I just wish we'd done more. We had the chance to apprehend Torchwick, and he got away. It's frustrating," Blake said, stepping off the transport with the rest of them.

Sun was the one to speak up this time. "There's always next time. Besides, we're lucky we did anything. Would've been pretty easy to pick us off inside the warehouse. It was your quick thinking that got us out of there in the first place. We did the best we could."

"Sun's right. Next time, we'll be ready. We weren't as prepared as we needed to be, me especially, so next time we will be," Jaune said, before he found himself no longer touching the ground.

"Uh…" Jaune began, but the pale faces of all his friends were enough evidence to point out the Goliath in the room, so to speak, even without the spontaneous levitation.

"Hey, Professor Goodwitch, fancy seeing you here…"

The disapproving expression on the stern professor's face did not bode well for Jaune.

* * *

In his life, Jaune had had quite a few stern talking-to's. He'd never been a trouble-maker, but that didn't mean he hadn't made mistakes in the past.

Of course, his mother was almost as terrifying as Professor Goodwitch when she was angry, so he had a little bit of practice in dealing with this very situation, but this time, the ramifications were much different.

They'd been taken inside the campus, shown into a room full of chairs they'd never seen before, and one by one they had been retrieved by a frustrated and exhausted looking Professor Goodwitch. Those who she retrieved never came back into the room, and finally, Jaune was the last left, sitting alone in a vaguely uncomfortable chair.

Finally, after what seemed like an age, but was more than likely only a few minutes at most, the door opened, and Glynda stepped through, frowning at him.

"My turn?" Jaune asked, nervously. He only received a sharp nod, for which he was grateful it wasn't anything more, and he stood, following the blonde professor out of the room and down the hallway, into a much smaller room, vaguely reminiscent of an interrogation room. Then again, considering what was about to happen, Jaune wasn't all that surprised that was the first thing that came to mind.

Ozpin sat in one of the chairs, a solemn expression on his face, typical mug absent. He gestured for Jaune to sit, and Jaune, of course, followed the instruction, placing himself into the chair.

As Goodwitch took her place, standing behind the headmaster, Jaune gulped.

"Mr Arc. I know why you did what you did, and I know what went through your mind as you came up with the reasons. You want to be a hero. You want to help people, to save lives, to kill Grimm. To be a Huntsman all can look up to and respect."

Jaune nodded along.

"This… this is not the way to go about it. This is a way to get yourself, and your friends killed. You, of all people, should be aware of this. Not everyone is as resilient as you."

Jaune was up on his feet in an instant. "What were we supposed to do, sir? Let the criminal elements run free, killing indiscriminately until something was finally done?"

Ozpin raised a placating hand, and Jaune lowered himself back into his seat. "Not quite, Mr Arc. You are smart, strong, and you possess a semblance that is rather unique. You can go about this sort of thing a little more delicately, can you not?"

Jaune was at a loss for words, unable to understand what the headmaster was getting at.

"Mr Arc, you and your friends have created quite the political incident. The council are stuck between a rock and a hard place, and thanks to the fact that you have rather publicly tracked Roman down, the general population have lost their faith in the police. Do you understand what I mean by that?"

Jaune nodded slowly. "You're saying that because a couple teenagers could find Roman and the White Fang, and the police couldn't, people are less likely to trust the police."

"Yes, Mr Arc. And, if people don't trust the police, who are they to trust? Certainly not the council, and now suddenly you have a powerless council, with an untrusted police force, and the only people who are trusted to uphold the law are the Hunters. You can imagine how much the council will dislike that."

Jaune paled. "What are they going to do?"

Ozpin shook his head. "Nothing, yet. The information about what happened has been suppressed, and you and your friends involvement has been wiped. The official story is that Roman Torchwick went on a rampage in a stolen Atlesian mech, and was stopped by police, with no casualties. That also helps to explain the large chunk of overpass that is conspicuously missing. Something I'm led to believe was not Roman's doing?"

Jaune was aware that his hand was scratching at the back of his head, but he did nothing to stop it. "Yeah… I had to stop him somehow, and it was the only thing I could think of."

Ozpin frowned slightly, interlacing his fingers. "Hmm. Unfortunately, Roman is gathering more information on you without even intending to. I would not be surprised if he and his employer are aware of your ability, or at least tangentially aware. This could be problematic."

"Headmaster, we could try and get in touch with Qrow, have him find out if Torchwick knows anything," Glynda said in a half-whisper.

Ozpin shook his head. "No. Qrow is busy with his current assignment, and there is no sense in dragging him away for a potential wild goose chase. The Gods know he's had to deal with enough of them as of late."

Silence fell over the room, before Ozpin spoke once more. "Mr Arc, please return to your dormitory. And, please, for all of our sakes, don't try anything. I appreciate sleep as much as Glynda does, and from what it looks like, you could use some yourself, so please do not make this anymore difficult than it has to be."

Jaune was quick to his feet, although his brain seemed to lag behind his body. "Yes, sir."

Jaune had never thought of Ozpin as intimidating, but there was a vibe there, something he hadn't ever picked up on before. It made him nervous, more nervous than he'd ever recalled being before.

Of course, all these observations would come in the morning, because the moment Jaune made it back to his dorm he joined the rest of his team in complete, utter exhaustion, flopping face-first into his bed and falling asleep before his head even hit the pillow.

At least his new clothes were somewhat comfortable.

* * *

Morning broke like it did every morning, as usual, and without regard or consideration for those who might've had a late night fighting crime.

This meant, for said people, the sun that shone through the windows was a little too bright for their particular liking, and considering the majority of them weren't morning people to begin with, this meant that waking up and getting ready for class was a little more strenuous than normal.

For Jaune, this meant deciding between having a cold shower and sleeping in, or waking earlier and having a warm one. Decisions, decisions, something Jaune had struggled with in the past.

Jaune took the option of the warm shower this particular morning, using the opportunity to check through his notifications.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 500,100 XP!]**

At this point, Jaune had stopped being surprised at how much XP he was earning, because this was one time he felt like he deserved at least some kind of reward. Roman had nearly killed all of them. Well, he'd gotten damn close enough to make them worry, at least.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Vigilantism**_ **]**

 **[Rewards: 30,000 XP, Skill Book]**

Jaune quickly checked his inventory in a new window, noticing that the new skill book had placed itself next to the one he was yet to check out yet. He nodded to himself, mentally setting a reminder to check them out at the next opportunity.

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Pulse**_ **has reached Level 22!]**

 **[** _ **Spinning Mana Bullet**_ **has reached Level 21!]**

 **[** _ **Dodge**_ **has reached Level 23!]**

 **[** _ **Surface Walk**_ **has reached Level 20!]**

 **[** _ **Observe**_ **has reached Level 24!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Shield**_ **has reached Level 23!]**

 **[For defeating a boss of such caliber, you've gained +1 to all Stats!]**

Well, a plus one to all stats was nice, and so were the levels for his skills.

He gave his stat page a quick check, scanning through, and was glad that he had remembered to check the mech for loot.

A solid, square, 10,000 Lien, in glistening golden 1000 Lien cards. That was a very, very nice reward, something Jaune was happy to have in his pocket. It'd even split evenly with the ten of them, if he included Nora and Ren, which he knew he should.

 **[You've earned a new Title!]**

 **[Copper Banker:** _As a Copper Banker, you now earn 10% more Lien from drops._ _ **Next Rank: Bronze Banker (Hold 25k Lien)**_ **]**

Another Title to add to the collection, too. Jaune knew he couldn't have more than one title equipped at a time, he'd tried that with Soul Tamer and it hadn't worked. It was nice to have the option of gaining more Lien or more XP depending on the situation, though.

He could hot-swap the titles, though, if he was paying enough attention. 'If' being the operative word.

Jaune cut off the water as he dismissed the notification boxes, and quickly towelled himself off, rapidly equipping his uniform with barely a glance at the screen, instinct carrying him through his regular morning rituals.

He exited the bathroom and tossed his dirty clothes into the hamper that sat on the end of his bed, said good morning to Pyrrha, who was next into the bathroom, having woken less than a minute before, and pulled out one of the two skill books he'd acquired.

This one, the reward from fighting Ren, was less of a book and more of a large pamphlet, entitled 'Mindfulness and You'. Jaune wasn't sure what it was going to entail, but he opened it up and began to read regardless.

After only an introductory page, covering breathing exercises, the pamphlet went blank, a box floating in front. Jaune, used to this by now, tapped accept with his finger, and felt the new skill flow into his brain like water into a partially-filled jug.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Meditation (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now meditate to increase your HP, MP, SP and AP regeneration by 100%._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

Jaune whistled quietly in admiration, realising that this was a rather useful skill. Doubling his meter regeneration was impressive, and if all he had to do was focus inwards and quieten his mind, it wasn't even that difficult to pull off.

Well, at least, it wasn't now that he knew how to do it. A year ago, he would've struggled to even consider quietening his mind as anything plausible.

Of course, quietening his mind also meant losing track of time, and as Jaune tested what it felt like to use _Meditation_ , Pyrrha exited the bathroom, dressed in her uniform, and woke Blake, giving the black-haired faunus a gentle shake.

Blake, much like the ninja's Jaune assumed she read about, woke in an instant, fully aware, the only giveaway the flicking of one ear.

Jaune, blissfully unaware of the entire situation, opened his eyes as someone shook his shoulder.

Blake stepped into the bathroom as Jaune looked to Weiss, who'd shaken him out of his meditative stupor.

"Morning, Weiss," Jaune said, in lieu of greeting.

"Morning, Arc. We have class in fifteen minutes. I hope you are aware of which class. You do know, right?" Weiss's impatience was clear, her foot tapping the ground in a beat only she could decipher.

"Uh…" Jaune began flawlessly, doing his damnedest to recall what the first class of the day was.

Jaune couldn't recall what the first class of the day was.

Weiss didn't even try to reprimand him, just shaking her head with a disappointed sigh. "Nevermind, Arc. I don't know why I expected anything different. Go back to reading your books."

Jaune just shrugged, and did as she suggested, grabbing out the other skill book, the one that he'd gotten for beating Roman.

This one was a little more condescending, which Jaune assumed was relative to Roman's personality. 'Misdirection for Morons' was a pretty offensive title, at least in his opinion, but that was only because he was a moron, or at least in Weiss's opinion.

However, there was nothing to even read in the book, which was moderately disappointing. He'd hoped for at least a paragraph or something, to at least give him some context, but no, nothing.

With another shrug, Jaune learned the skill.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Sleight of Hand (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of performing acts of Sleight of Hand, including things such as card tricks, knife flipping, and pickpocketing._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

Of course, being given a book with such a pretentious name was worth every single insult, because now Jaune knew card tricks. Other things, too, but card tricks were always cool.

"Weiss, Pyrrha, neither of you happen to have a deck of cards, do you?" Jaune asked, and whereas Pyrrha just shook her head, Weiss gave him a weird look.

"What could you possibly need with a deck of cards, Arc?" She asked, visibly confused.

"I just wanted to try out a new skill I just learned, that's all. If you don't, that's fine, I'm sure I can find something similar somewhere," Jaune replied.

"I don't have a deck of cards, I'm afraid," Weiss said, and Jaune just nodded.

"Alright, that's fine. Toss me a pen?"

Weiss did as she was asked, gently throwing a pen from one of the desks towards Jaune, who deftly caught it.

A second passed as he considered his options, and then he activated _Sleight of Hand_ , and began twirling the pen between his fingers, effortlessly maneuvering it without pause or flaw, somehow tracing a hypnotic pattern in the air with it as he did so.

At one point he managed to transition the pen between hands without breaking the flow or rhythm of the pattern, and Weiss couldn't help but be entranced as he did so, spiralling it until he ended the impromptu show by flipping the pen and balancing it perfectly on the end of his finger.

"Well, I can't see how that skill would have any combat relevance, but I can admit that it is rather enjoyable to watch," Weiss said.

"Impressive, Jaune. Your skills give you an incredible advantage over those who would have to learn these kinds of tricks over a long period of time," Pyrrha said, shaking her head to clear her mind of the intoxicating viewing of the pen. "It was almost… hypnotic."

Jaune laughed as he stood, placing the pen back on the table. "Yeah, right? Shame I can't actually do hypnotism…"

It was at this moment, right here, right now, that the entirety of Remnant was doomed.

* * *

 **Whew, wasn't that a long one! Lots of stuff happened, Jaune got some new skills, got into a big ol' fight, and got into some hefty political trouble. Well, not really, but it was a close one. I never understood how Ozpin just sweeps the incident under the rug in canon, but at the same time, I can understand why. At least I tried to provide a reasonable response to it.**

 **Gods, it's good to be back. Let's get onto reviews!**

 **merendinoemiliano: Thanks, man! I hope this chapter held up to your expectations!**

 **Xerzo LotCN: Right, so schooling is pretty different in the US. Honestly, I don't know how universal college would be, unless college is another word for university. As for changing his race, shush, you might spoil something :P. I can also see where you're coming from concerning Nep and Sun. I've always enjoyed writing characters, and Neptune strikes me as the kinda guy you'd go to to help prepare for a date, and Sun seems like the kinda guy who's got your back, no matter what, the perfect wingman. They be bros, no doubt.**

 **MajorTimmy: Just then, in fact. Meditation is a skill usually added quite early into Gamer fics, but I figured it'd fit a little better later on.**

 **loganhunter2: Welcome, glad to have you! Weiss may not be best girl IMO, but she's still great. At least she's warming up to everyone. I'm glad you're liking it though!**

 **TypedSomeWords: Yeah, there may be some " or ' errors, though that's probably me just missing the key with my shaky fingers. I kind of agree with you, there are quite a few skills, but I might be taking care of that soon enough, with a publicly available skill list of sorts. Don't quote me on that, I'm still working on the concept. Glad you're liking Sun, and the familiar food guy is best girl (the old guy from the Dust store in episode 1). And hey, while you were here, I was glad to have you as a reader. Your reviews were always detailed and informative, and I appreciate you sticking around for as long as you did. Take care, and keep an eye out. At some point, I'll end up branching out into other fandoms. Who knows!**

 **Ozpin52: Hey, no problem! I'm happy to hear so many people enjoying the characters, I try to write them as realistic as possible, but also as fun and enjoyable, too!**

 **Thanks to all of you, those who I did reply to, those who didn't, and those who didn't review. I'm glad to have you all, and I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season, and a wonderful new year. Here's to 2019, and all the upcoming chapters! I'm not stopping anytime soon!**

 **I also have a Pa treon at AFatFlyingWhale, and a Twitter at fat_flying. Come check me out, and support me if you really want to!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	25. The Assignment: Part 1

**Back to the regular sized chapters this week, but good news is, I'm on a streak. Already have next week's chapter written and waiting to edit, but I can and probably will still change things. Enjoy!**

* * *

Okay, so Jaune might've been exaggerating when he said the entirety of Remnant was doomed.

Hypnotism, and by that respect, mind control, were easy concepts to grasp, but in both detail and function, they were incredibly complex. Where did you even start with something like that?

Jaune didn't know, and so, in his infinite wisdom, or thereabouts, he'd filed that in his mental to-do list, resolving to look at it at a later time, when he had more of a grasp on his semblance.

The hilt of Crescent Rose smacked him in the cheek, and his Aura flared up as he stumbled backwards, shaking his head to rid it of the momentary disorientation.

"Losing focus in a match, Jaune? That's unlike you," Ruby said teasingly, and Jaune just waved it off as he ducked under her second swing, moving his feet into a better position to handle her attacks.

"Just got a few things on my mind, that's all," He replied, shrugging off another attack, her blade sparking off his dented shield. "Nothing that'd distract me too much to lose to you."

"Harsh. Good thing I've been studying the way you fight!" Ruby said, before bursting into non-existence, her speed almost super-sonic, impossible for Jaune to track with his eyes.

He rotated evenly, eyes snapping to the occasional flicker of her red-cloaked form as it appeared every so often, keeping his shield up and ready, Crocea Mors in a relaxed grip.

Jaune wasn't unduly worried. Sure, Ruby was a tough fighter, and for being two years his junior, she was leagues ahead of most students, but…

Jaune always had an advantage prepared.

One thing about Ruby's speed was that she relied on her ability to run. Without that, no super-speed sprinting or rapid attacks.

Jaune slammed the point of Crocea Mors into the ground, and cast _Mana Quake_.

It was a low damage spell, but it was enough to crack the dirt, and enough to throw Ruby off her pace. Not for long, only for a split-second, but Jaune made his move, darting in with a wide slash prepared.

Ruby barely managed to regain her footing as she blocked, the haft of her scythe ringing out as Crocea Mors reverberated off it, the two sliding back from the force of the impact.

"Damn, Jaune, that was close!" Ruby huffed out, panting.

"Not close enough. Thought I had you there," Jaune replied, leaning of the hilt of Crocea Mors, having once again buried the tip into the dirt.

"Wanna go for another before class?" Ruby asked, but Jaune shook his head.

"Nah, it's combat class. No doubt Goodwitch is going to pick on me again, against someone else."

Ruby put a pondering finger to her lips, tilting her head in thought. "Wait, isn't this the class where we talk about our assignment?

Jaune placed his weapon on his back, having stiffly wedged the blade into the somewhat iffy sheath that he was considering getting replaced. "Yeah, right… Any idea what that assignment is?"

Ruby's reply did not surprise him in the slightest. "Nope!"

The blond teen just shook his head. "Figured as much. Well, only one way to find out. Well, two, but I really don't want to have to ask Weiss."

* * *

With a few minutes before class, Jaune and Ruby had bypassed the Beacon Cliffs, and had made it to the door of the class, where a couple students lingered, wearing some anxious looks.

One such student was Weiss, expectantly, but to see the white-haired heiress with an anxious expression was not something Jaune was used to.

"Hey Weiss, what's up? You look a little… uh…" Jaune said, elegantly.

"Hmm? Oh, hello Jaune, Ruby. I'm fine," Weiss replied, as convincing as a dog that had just torn up a couch cushion and was doing its best not to look guilty despite being covered in shredded fabric.

"Right… Seriously, though, what's wrong?" Jaune asked, concerned.

Weiss caved. "I checked the syllabus again last night, in preparation for this afternoon's class, but there are no details for the assignment aside from the total grade percentage!"

Jaune nodded, before realising that Weiss had finished. "Wait, that's all?"

"What do you mean 'that's all'!" Weiss shrieked. "It's worth fifty percent of our grade this semester, and I have no idea how to prepare for it!"

Jaune raised his hands in an attempt to placate his teammate. "Woah, Weiss, calm down! We're all in the same boat, it's not like it's just you without the information!"

Weiss did seem to be comforted by that, and Ruby decided to help out. "Yeah, Weiss, and we all know you're the best for schoolwork! You'll probably come out on top even if we did all have some preparation!"

"Well, yes, thank you, but I do still find myself worried. What if the assignment is something I am unable to complete, or worse, group work!" Weiss said.

"I guess we'll find out soon enough, here comes the professor, a minute early as usual," Jaune said, motioning towards the approaching blonde woman, who paid them no attention as she calmly scrolled through a list on her tablet, even as she unlocked and opened the classroom door.

Behind her came the rest of AWBN and RRYN, and the eight quickly took their usual seats, but even as they did, Jaune could pick up on the anticipation in the air.

Now even he was curious about what the assignment was.

Professor Goodwitch waited the time it took for the rest of the students to filter in, the last of which being CRDL, Cardin wearing that stock smug face of his.

Of course, it dropped to a barely-concealed snarl when he saw Jaune, but at this point, Jaune wasn't even close to being intimidated.

Besides, Cardin deserved anything that was coming to him, in Jaune's opinion, one that he knew a lot of his friends agreed with.

As Jaune activated _Intimidating Presence_ , he watched the snarl disappear, and Cardin was quick to look away, skin paling slightly.

' _Serves him right,'_ Jaune thought, as he turned his attention back to the front of the class.

Goodwitch was looking right at him, and he gave a shrug, to which the professor just shook her head, and began the lesson.

"Morning. I'm going to cut all the excess today, and jump right into the meat of the matter, so to speak. I know some of you have read the syllabus, or should have, as I have made very clear by now, and so I know that some of you are wondering about the content of the assignment, and why it is worth fifty percent of your grade." Professor Goodwitch began, glancing around the classroom to make sure she had their undivided attention. "The assignment is not written, nor is it oral, or anything. It is practical in nature, though on a different scale to the practical examination you will be undergoing at the end of the semester."

She paused, taking in the silence for a moment, before continuing.

"You will be landing in the wilderness, and must make it back to civilization. You will be dropped as teams, without any more supplies than you can carry. You will have two weeks to make it back to campus."

The silence was, inexplicably, deafening.

"If you cannot, for some reason, make it back to campus in two weeks, or you have to call for extraction with the flare guns we will be giving you, you will fail the assignment. If you are severely injured, incapacitated or otherwise unable to continue, you will fail the assignment. The rules are rather simple. Any questions?"

Weiss appeared to be dumbfounded, but Jaune had switched his team-leader mode on. "Professor, where are we going to be dropped?"

Goodwitch turned to face the blond teen. "Where you will be dropped will be decided at random, and you will not be told."

Jaune still had more questions, ones that pertained a little more specifically to his semblance. "What about supplies? You said as much as we can carry, right? Are there any more limits to that?"

"No. If you can carry it and it does not get in the way of your combat effectiveness, then you may take it," She replied.

"How long do we have to prepare?" Ruby asked, also in her team-leader mode, sitting in the seat next to Jaune.

"You have all of today, and until tomorrow evening. That brings me to my next point. Tomorrow at six pm, you are to meet at the Beacon docks, for departure. Make sure you are prepared. Good luck, dismissed."

The class looked a little shocked, but Jaune and Ruby were quick to stand, their teams following their respective leaders.

"That… was not what I was expecting. Not by a long shot," Yang said as they walked.

"Quite. I didn't know what was coming, but a practical survival examination was certainly not what I had thought it would be," Weiss agreed. "Arc, do you have any plans?"

Jaune nodded. "I've got a couple ideas, yeah. It depends where we get dropped, but we should be all good for supplies at least."

"Have I mentioned that your semblance is just plain cheating?" Yang remarked, and Ruby elbowed her in the stomach.

"Yang, think about it this way! When we get back before AWBN, imagine how amazing we'll be!" Ruby said with a cheer, one that Nora quickly joined in on.

"Feeling cocky, are we?" Jaune asked.

"I do find that competition makes things more… enjoyable," Pyrrha said.

"Is that what you'd call it, Pyr?" Yang said, turning to face the champion.

The redhead met Yang's stare evenly. "Why yes, Yang, that is what I'd call it. Why, so worried you might lose you're trying to throw me off my game before it's even began?"

Blake and Ren shared a quirked eyebrow.

"Well, if this is a challenge, and damn right it is, I'm not going to let you guys have any more of an advantage. C'mon, Rubes, let's get prepped!" Yang exclaimed, grabbing her sister by the arm and practically tugging her down the corridor.

Nora didn't even bother with the arm grabbing, instead just straight-up lifting Ren up and carrying him over her head like he was a ladder.

Jaune looked at Pyrrha. "Don't even think about carrying me."

* * *

Their dorm was not quiet by any stretch of the imagination, though there was good reason. It wasn't just the two teams getting themselves ready for the upcoming trial.

"So, Weiss, Blake, you two are on supplies. We're going to be gone for roughly two weeks, so make sure we've got enough of anything we might need. Don't worry about space, I'll just toss it all in my inventory. Pyrrha, want to come with me? I'm going to go get my shield fixed, and there might be some other errands we can run while we're out," Jaune said.

"Sure thing, Jaune. I know a good place for armaments, actually, I endorsed them about a year or so ago," Pyrrha said.

"We'll stay in touch, if there's anything we need doing that we can't do ourselves," Blake said, and without further speech, she left, Weiss in tow.

Jaune and Pyrrha were quick to follow, joining the monochromatic duo on their way to the shuttle to Vale.

"You do know that we also have to take the shuttle, right Blake?" Jaune asked, a grin on his face.

Blake, wisely, ignored him.

* * *

Having said a temporary farewell to the black and white partnership that formed half of AWBN, Jaune and Pyrrha were walking down the street in Vale, a situation Jaune was starting to become rather familiar with.

Pyrrha was, expectedly, leading, as she knew where the store they were headed to was located, and as the two walked, Jaune struck up a conversation.

"So, Pyrrha, have you always been this competitive?"

Pyrrha's face took on a slight blush. "Well, I suppose I have. Certainly not to the extent that I was today, I feel like I might've gone a little overboard, but I have always been competitive. That is one of my major drives in life, ever since I started training."

Jaune nodded. "I can imagine. Wouldn't make much sense to fight in so many tournaments if you didn't enjoy the thrill of the challenge. Still, where'd the name 'Invincible Girl' come from?"

Pyrrha's blush only increased. "I, uh, acquired the title when I won my second major tournament in a row without taking a hit to my Aura."

Jaune's eyebrows shot up to the top of his head, though if they had been separate entities, he was sure they would've ascended further. "Without taking a single hit? Damn, that's pretty impressive. It's a wonder how I've managed to land a hit."

"It was a while ago, and I was told I was unnaturally talented for my age. I doubt I could replicate it now," Pyrrha said, as they rounded a corner.

"You never know, Pyrrha. At least, no one's ever been able to best you in sparring. Sure, I might land a hit or two in, but that's because I've got a pretty significant advantage over everyone. I have easily fifty something semblances in one, at this point," Jaune remarked, withdrawing a single Lien card from his pocket, flipping it over and over in his hand, _Sleight of Hand_ running.

"So it would appear. Thank you for your words of encouragement, Jaune, I appreciate them," Pyrrha said, before Jaune gave her a sly smirk.

"So, why Yang? Why'd she rile your competitive spirit up so much?" Jaune asked, still wearing the smirk.

At this, Pyrrha faltered. "Um… Uh… Because Yang is the closest to me in terms of combat skill out of all the first years?"

It sounded plausible, at least, to Pyrrha. Jaune, however, felt less inclined to take it as gospel truth. "Right," He remarked, drawing the word out to a dramatic length. "So, where are we headed?"

Pyrrha wasn't certain if she liked the fact that Jaune had just given up on the prodding into her reasoning, but she leapt at the chance to change the subject nonetheless. "Ah, my father knows a weaponsmith in Vale, one that handled my weapons when I was here for a tournament. I performed a recommendation deal with them in exchange for free repairs for myself and friends, should we ever need it. I've never had to use it before, but we might as well take advantage of it, right?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, I don't see why not. It isn't like they'd have offered if they weren't willing to follow through."

'Roust's Weapons and Armor' wasn't small, but nor was it an over-commercialized nightmare of a building. It had a quaint look to it, old stonework and wood, but even then it wasn't difficult to spot the more modernized parts, like the steel-reinforced window frame, and the electronic lock on the door.

Pyrrha entered first, stepping through the door with an electronic chime, and Jaune followed behind her, glancing around the wares the store had on offer.

The walls, homely and comforting, were decorated with a plethora of hand-crafted weapons and armor, all gleaming in the firelight that escaped from the small stone fireplace on the far wall, a couple worn couches sitting there.

All in all, it had a nice atmosphere, Jaune had to admit, and it was honestly quite comfortable. Jaune already felt relaxed, though he hadn't even realised he was anxious about the assignment.

"Hey, Nikos! Been a while, how've you been?" A man greeted loudly, his voice seeming to boom despite it not actually being that loud.

Pyrrha smiled politely and Jaune turned to face the man, only to be greeted with what was a mountain of a man, all dense muscle and salt-and-pepper hair, a massive bushy beard covering a grin that seemed to nearly escape his face.

"Hello, Mr Roust. I've been great, how about you?" Pyrrha returned the greeting with her customary smile.

"Ah, well, can't say it's been bad! Business has been a little slow these past few months, but I still get pretty regular customers, so I've had some spare time on my hands, for the first time in years!" Roust returned, finishing with a hearty laugh. "But you aren't here to make small talk, are you. What do you need?"

"My team leader recently damaged his shield, and I was wondering if our agreement was still ongoing?" Pyrrha said, motioning to Jaune.

Jaune stepped forward with a polite nod, and handed the sheath over, blade already drawn.

"Mmm…" Roust began, humming as he glanced over the proffered item, practised eyes scanning over it quickly. "This is some fine craftsmanship, no doubt. What did you block for it to take so much damage?"

Jaune laughed nervously, scratching at the back of his head. "Some pretty high-caliber machine-gun rounds, for a little while."

Roust quirked an eyebrow. "Yeah, that'd do it alright. So, when do you need it fixed by?"

Pyrrha and Jaune shared a glance, and before either could answer, Roust held up his hand.

"Let me guess. By tomorrow?" He asked, his grin not dropping.

"If it's not that difficult, then that would be appreciated," Pyrrha said.

"Ah, I've been a little bored anyway, need a good challenge every now and again! Come round tomorrow morning, and it'll be all good! Take care!" Roust said with a laugh, and Pyrrha and Jaune found themselves ushered out of the store, Crocea Mors hung on a loop on his belt.

Jaune shared a glance with his partner. "Well, that went well."

* * *

Elsewhere, Blake and Weiss were having a conversation.

This wasn't that big a surprise, but it was an important thing to take notice of, considering despite the fact that they'd been partners for nearly half a year now, and neither had managed to share a meaningful conversation that wasn't spurred on by an argument.

"Honestly, I never watched any of your concerts. That's the sort of thing that would be classed as treason in the Fang, so I'm sure you can understand," Blake said, performing a very accurate replication of Jaune's head-scratch.

Weiss winced. "Yes, I can understand. That would be like if I decided to attend a rally. Not exactly beneficial for my status, or my inheritance. Did you have any time for music, or something like that?"

Blake's mouth twitched into something akin to a smile. "Music, no, but I was, and still am, an avid reader, if you hadn't noticed. In between training and other… things… I would read, constantly. I think it's because it would offer a sort of escape from my reality, into a world not quite my own. Somewhere where discrimination had been eradicated, somewhere I could see my goal realised."

Weiss nodded. "I understand completely where you're coming from. My father is… quite controlling, but I would escape his control with music. It was lonely, but I always appreciated the sounds. When I wrote my own songs, I could write them how I truly felt. It was escapism, and I'm certain if I listened back it would be pretty easy to tell exactly my opinions. Luckily, most of the important people in Atlas either aren't smart enough or don't care enough to look any deeper than the surface of the lyrics."

At that, Blake let out a slight, quiet chuckle. "I don't think the majority of the Atlesian upper-class care much about anything other than themselves."

"Oh, you have no idea how insufferable they can be in person. If they weren't blaming someone else for their lot in life, they were scheming to buy out another business, rubbing shoulders with my father, or attending parties of no substance, day in and day out. It was so frustrating, being dragged about and forced to listen to their problems, as if they were out there suffering," Weiss exclaimed.

"So you want to help the faunus so you don't have to listen to people complain all the time?" Blake asked, mild amusement in her voice.

"Well, I mean, it isn't the main reason, more of a side benefit. I couldn't sacrifice my own sanity for the cause, that would change nothing!" Weiss sputtered.

"I think we've sacrificed enough sanity just dealing with Jaune, at this point," Blake remarked.

"Don't even get me started. I thought Ozpin was mad, putting Jaune as our leader. Turns out, I'm mad, because everything that's happened so far as effectively broken my outlook on the world. Most of the things he can do don't even make sense!" Weiss commiserated.

"Better he's on our side than against us, I suppose. If Jaune had the personality of Cardin, you can guarantee we'd be fighting over who got to stab him first," Blake pointed out, as the two neared a supply store.

"I think we'd have to fight Pyrrha over the honour, as well. I don't fancy attempting that," Weiss said pensively. "Honestly, between us and RRYN, there's a pretty good chance we're the most powerful first years in some time."

"Well, I guess thanks to Pyrrha we'll see who is the better team after this. C'mon, we should get stocked up. Do you have any experience with survivalist gear, or camping, or anything we're going to be doing?" Blake asked.

"Well… define experience," Weiss replied, not meeting the amber eyes that looked at her.

"You've just read about it, haven't you."

Weiss's glum expression was all Blake needed in lieu of an answer. "Well, at least there's one of us."

* * *

Having organised to meet up at a cafe not too far from the supply store, Jaune and Pyrrha were the latter of the four to arrive, to see Blake and Weiss at a table.

The two sat with the other two, and as basic as math can get, they added together to make four, just enough to fill the seats at the table.

"So, how'd shopping go?" Jaune asked, wincing as his sword clanged against his chair.

"Rather well, despite Weiss's insistence on purchasing a portable air-conditioner," Blake replied, a ghost of a smile on her face.

Weiss spun in her seat, accusing eyes glaring at Blake. "I had thought we weren't going to mention that!"

Pyrrha giggled as Jaune stared deadpan at the platinum-blonde. "Weiss, what could you possibly need a portable air-conditioner for. We aren't going into the desert. I think."

"It isn't as if we'll run out of space, is it?" Weiss remarked icily.

"Weiss, you literally carry around Ice Dust," Jaune fired back.

"I-" Weiss began, before cutting herself off, a muttered "damn" being the only response she could come up with.

"We bought a decent sized tent, about two weeks worth of field rations for four people, ammunition for myself and Pyrrha, and a set of basic tools, just in case," Blake filled in.

"Smart. You've done this before, haven't you?" Jaune asked.

"Yes. I've had to rough it with less before, so I have a decent grasp on what might be needed," Blake answered.

"Well, as much as I would like to carry a large barbeque around, and raw ingredients for a nice meal each night, I still don't know the limits of my inventory. Probably a good idea if I don't mess with it in a situation like this," Jaune said, half-talking to himself.

"You could just take something to test. You might as well, no harm in it," Pyrrha said, and Jaune nodded, before thanking the waiter as he delivered the four's orders.

Silence filled the group as they consumed their beverages, before Jaune piped up with an idea. "So, guys… want to go spy on RRYN, see if we can figure out if we've got the upper hand on them?"

Blake raised an eyebrow. "Where'd this idea come from?"

Jaune answered with a simple point. "Because they're right there, and they haven't seen us."

Three heads swivelled to look where Jaune was pointing, and it was apparent that the teen was no liar, as down the street, entering the supply store Blake and Weiss had recently exited, was all four members of RRYN, lead by an excitable Ruby and a somehow even more excitable Nora, with Ren bringing up the rear next to Yang, the two sharing what looked to be reasonable discussion, though with Yang, nothing ever remained reasonable for long.

"Blake, what do your faunus ears hear?" Jaune asked with a smile, as Blake kicked him in the shin.

"Don't you dare, you ass. Besides, I can't hear them, too much background noise," Blake replied grumpily.

"Aw-" Jaune began, but Blake cut him off.

"If you make a joke about me being a grumpy cat, I will make sure your next two weeks are a living hell."

Jaune just raised his hands in a placating manner. "Wasn't considering it."

"Sure." Blake's stare was intense, and Jaune nearly shivered.

"Well, are we going to go monitor them, or not?" Weiss asked, already paying the tab.

Pyrrha was up on her feet, a look of anticipation on her face. "It's fair, right? It isn't cheating?"

Jaune shrugged. "It's not like there were any rules to begin with."

Weiss and Pyrrha barely waited for Jaune to finish his sentence, the two most competitive members of AWBN already 'sneaking' their way towards the supply store.

Blake and Jaune shared a glance. "Stealth isn't their strong suit, is it?" Jaune asked.

Blake just shook her head in solemn silence.

"Well, at least I know what we're focusing on next time we train."

* * *

Luckily for AWBN, RRYN weren't exactly experts at spotting that they were being followed. With Blake's natural aptitude for stealth, Weiss's smaller frame and Pyrrha's light footwork, the three were at least somewhat stealthy, despite what the latter two had tried on their approach, but it was Jaune who was a little more heavy-footed, and considering he was the tallest out of almost every first-year, if not the tallest, he found it a little harder to blend in.

Luckily for him specifically, though, his attempt at stealth unlocked him a new skill.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Sneak (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, your presence is hidden, making yourself harder to detect. Sneaking is affected by a variety of environmental effects, and is more effective the higher your AGI._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

For once, Jaune was almost silent as he stepped, seeming to become a part of whatever crowd there was lingering. Blake could easily keep track of him, of course, but Weiss and Pyrrha seemed to lose him every so often, jumping in surprise every time he spoke.

Blake was quick to provide recon for the group, her faunus traits giving her a distinct advantage over the rest when it came to auditory reception, and she continued to report what she heard, if it was potentially important.

Most of it, however, was inane chatter, primarily from Nora and Yang.

Except one thing, something that Blake picked up on.

"No way, they wouldn't…" The black-haired girl breathed out, shock adorning her face.

Jaune noticed. "We got what we needed?"

Blake just nodded soundlessly, backing away from RRYN and motioning for the rest of AWBN to follow her outside.

It wasn't as if it took that long to exit the building, though it appeared that Blake was not planning on returning to the cafe, or some nearby place to sit and go over what they had learned.

"I think they're planning on stealing the drop locations from Goodwitch's office," Blake said, once they'd made some distance.

Even Jaune quirked an eyebrow at that. "You've got to be kidding me."

Blake shook her head. "Ruby was seriously considering it. I think Yang suggested it as a joke and Nora latched onto it, but Ruby went silent for a pretty long time."

Jaune let out a laugh. "And here I thought Yang was the bad influence. Ren didn't object?"

"I don't think Ren can object to anything anymore. I think they'll just outvote him," Blake replied.

"Well, there must be something we can do to prevent them from doing it. We have a reputation to uphold!" Weiss exclaimed.

"Weiss, why is our reputation dependent on what RRYN does?" Jaune asked. "Also, you and Pyrrha have reputations. Blake and I, not so much."

"If we lose this, we'll be seen as the weaker team!" Weiss exclaimed again, this time her voice slightly more shrill.

Jaune shook his head. "I don't think there are that many people who rank the teams, Weiss. I mean, sure, I'd like to win too, but don't you think we've got enough of an advantage as is? I'm literally a walking GPS combined with a portable dimension."

It looked as if Weiss couldn't quite figure out what she wanted to say in response to that, so Jaune moved the conversation along. "Look, if we're so bent on preventing them from getting ahold of the locations, why don't we just tell Goodwitch, and let her know we want it to be as close to a fair fight as possible? I'm certain the professor will be reasonable."

That was a stretch, and the others knew it.

"What's wrong, Jaune. Chicken?"

Jaune never expected Pyrrha to be so forward. Even Blake looked a little shocked at the champion's change of attitude.

The leader of AWBN just shook his head in resigned amusement. "I guess we'll do whatever majority agrees to. But, if things go south, I'd like to make it very, very clear; I told you so."

In truth, Jaune was terrified. He didn't want to have to plan a heist to steal a document from Goodwitch. That way lay madness, and potentially years worth of detention.

Cruel, indecent detention. He might have to scrub the communal showers each night for the rest of his time at Beacon! That would be… unspeakably evil.

Of course, his team agreed to get ahold of the document before RRYN could, and so, objections noted and ignored, Jaune was roped into his first criminal venture.

It would not be his last.

* * *

 **I really like my little headcanon of Pyrrha being fiercely competitive with Yang, to the point where it changes her personality. Anyway, not much for me to say down here, so let's get onto the reviews!**

 **CombatFan134: And have her phase through existence? No sir, no coffee for the vengeful knee-breaker, not anytime soon. Unless she sneaks it, in which case all hell may or may not break loose.**

 **jedimasterb10: I'm with you there, Canon-Oz is a shady bastard. Also, unfortunately, I write the chapter titles after the chapter, so I can pretty much only fit the dumbest of the jokes in there. Finally, multiple forms of hypnosis are in the unholy spreadsheet, so they will come up. Just not in the next few chapters.**

 **Re Fenrir: I know that you've probably already figured this out, but I did revamp the entire XP formula, so you needn't worry.**

 **SolomonEmrys: Romance is coming, I do have some plans, but I want it to develop a little more naturally. Most people start off as friends before they proceed that relationship further, at least in my experience, but it is planned. Jaune will be more self-assured sooner or later, whenever he decides to boost his CHA.**

 **SalemTheSpeakerOfTruth: I've made it relatively clear in the past, but I will repeat it again, for those who haven't seen it. This is a planned Lancaster, but I won't break character to make it happen. It'll evolve as naturally as I can write it, so it won't just happen instantly. There will be other pairings, too, but not with Jaune.**

 **Xerzo LotCN: I'm loving the ideas for Sleight Of Hand that you're suggesting, the small bombs thing is definitely something I didn't think of.**

 **Thank you all for reviewing, reading, following and fav-ing, 'cause we're now in the top 100 most followed fics for RWBY! I love you all, thank you for reading my scribblings, and if you want to find me elsewhere or want to support me, I have a Pa Treon (AFatFlyingWhale) and a Twitter fat_flying, come check it out if you want too!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	26. The Assignment: Part 2

**Slightly shorter chapter this week, ~4k words, but this is most likely going to be the usual chapter length in the coming weeks, I'm about to be really, really busy with college, at least for a while. Enjoy the chapter, though!**

* * *

Stealing from Glynda Goodwitch was a daunting prospect. It wasn't as if Jaune could just waltz inside her office and search through her documents until he found what he was looking for, and then just waltz back out, waving a goodbye to the professor on the way.

He needed to be smart, careful, and plan for every possibility.

Or, he could wait until a significant enough distraction was caused that drew the professor out of her office, quickly sneak in, and search for the document.

There would have to be plenty of physical evidence concerning the locations of the drop points, of course, from Bullhead requisition forms to information concerning the local density of Grimm, so it wasn't like he would have to break open a safe.

"This is Jaune, I'm in position," The blond said quietly, his scroll at his ear.

"Understood. Beginning phase one," Blake replied through the scroll. "Prepping the distraction."

Their plan was quite simple, but there was a hefty chance that it wouldn't give Jaune all that much time.

It also involved relying on Cardin to be his typical self, but unless the teen had suddenly had a miraculous change of heart, Jaune wasn't too worried.

Blake kept him informed of the goings-on, verbalizing the scene as it played out in front of her.

"Cardin's arrived. Pyrrha's moving in… Contact established, Cardin's mad. And he's made the first swing. Goodwitch will be notified shortly, Jaune, be patient."

Jaune just nodded to himself, keeping his back to the corner, around which lay his target.

"Pyrrha's yet to take a hit, unsurprisingly, but I've seen a few students headed your way. Three minutes out," Blake continued.

"Gotcha. Going silent," Jaune replied, hanging up and pocketing his scroll, keeping an ear out for the office door.

It didn't take that long before he heard the door open, and the telltale sound of the professor's heels along the floor. Jaune waited for the woman to round the opposite corner before he made his move, _Sneak_ activated as he gave the door a test.

The handle rattled, but the door did not budge. Locked.

This wasn't unexpected, and Jaune and his team had prepared for something like this. Jaune reached into his pocket and withdrew a hairpin, and with his newest skill, courtesy of Blake, he knelt down, and began to pick the lock.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Lockpicking (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of picking locks of varying type and difficulty, using certain tools._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

It took a good couple seconds, nearly hitting the double digits, but finally Jaune heard the telltale click of the door unlocking, and he quickly and quietly opened the door, before closing it behind him.

 **[Lockpicking has reached Level 2!]**

Now that he was inside, he took a glance around. He'd never actually been inside Goodwitch's office before, but now that he was, he could tell why the woman always seemed so stressed.

Paperwork was stacked in towering pillars, threatening to topple at the slightest provocation, and the desk, weighed down by even more paper, looked as if it was about to buckle under the pressure.

Jaune only had minutes, so he got to work.

Luckily, the reason they'd chosen Jaune to break in and not given the job to their more experienced teammate was due to one of Jaune's rather useful skills.

He didn't read any of the paperwork, just hitting each and every piece with a quick _Observe_ , trying to track down the right sheet.

It took nearly two minutes, even with the extreme advantage he possessed, but he eventually found what he was looking for.

A form, detailing the supply requisitions for fuel for the Bullheads. Each Bullhead was listed with a rough location, but whilst there wasn't a list of teams assigned to Bullheads, it was still useful.

Jaune quickly slotted the paper into the small photocopier that sat on the desk, and waited a second. He took the copy, placed the original back where he'd found it, and moved to the door.

He didn't have much time left, and the longer he waited, the more danger he was in, so he opened the door, closed it behind him, making sure it was locked, and turned to leave.

He walked with purpose, heading back towards where the distraction had gone down.

"Mr Arc!"

Jaune spun, slightly panicked, but doing his best to maintain an outward expression of calm. "Yes, Professor?"

"Please, try to keep your team in line. I understand that Mr Winchester can be aggravating, but there are still rules."

Goodwitch looked a little more frazzled than usual. "I will, Professor. I'm sorry."

The woman nodded, thankful that she didn't have to go into any more detail, and unlocked her office door, stepping inside.

The moment the door closed behind her, Jaune let out a breath, fists unclenching.

Even just that was too close for comfort. He didn't think he was cut out for a criminal's life. How Blake had ever managed to do things like this, Jaune had no idea.

Now all he had to do was get back to his dorm, and figure out the details of the document, all before they had to leave in the early evening.

Easy.

* * *

"Jaune, have you actually looked at this?" Weiss asked, from her seat on her bed, staring at the document.

"I took a glance at it, yeah. Why, what'd you find?" Jaune stepped over to the heiress, peering over her shoulder.

"The locations are rough, but they're all pretty close to one another, in the grand scheme of things. That's not it, though. Look at how much fuel has been requisitioned."

Jaune did, reading the figures. "I'm not exactly familiar with how much fuel is needed for a Bullhead, Weiss."

Weiss had her scroll out and was running calculations. "Gods, this is… The Bullheads are going to be covering a massive distance!"

That managed to capture Jaune's full attention. "How far?"

Weiss finished her math, paling. "Across the entire continent."

"Wait, we'd be headed to Vacuo?" That had Jaune concerned.

Weiss shook her head. "No, not quite. We could feasibly go that far, but the Bullheads have to remain on standby for the two weeks. Hold on."

She ran a couple more calculations, before coming up with an answer. "I think, according to everything I can see, we're headed south-west."

Jaune pulled out his own scroll. "It's mostly Grimmlands out there, barely any settlements. Dust, I doubt we'd even see living people for at least a week. I don't know how they expect us to get back in two weeks, the travel time would take nearly that long with a vehicle."

Weiss shook her head again. "True, but I doubt they'd send us that far. It'll still be Grimmlands, sure, but we won't be more than a fortnight out from civilization. They want the assignment to be fair, otherwise there would be no point to it."

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, you're right. Still, it's going to be a tough fight, even if we know where we're going. The Grimm out there are probably going to out-level us by at least a couple levels."

Pyrrha looked over from her own bed, equipment half-packed into her bag. "With four of us, though, it does nullify that advantage. Besides, even with increased Grimm numbers, we aren't going to have any spectators. You should be able to use your semblance fully, Jaune."

That brought a smile to Jaune's face. "It does feel like I don't get to let loose all that often. Is it weird that I'm looking forward to being stranded in the wilderness for two weeks?"

"No more weird than you usually are," Blake remarked from behind a book, her deadpan expression not giving anything away.

Jaune rolled his eyes. "Funny. You should stop trying to be a Huntress, get a job as a comedian."

"So long as you don't ever consider it."

Jaune knew he'd rarely get an opportunity to get the final word in a battle of wits with Blake, so he resolved himself to another loss. "Anyway, I'm going into Vale to pick up my shield. Is there anything we need while I'm down there?"

The three shook their heads in response, busying themselves with what they had been doing previous to their conversation, and so Jaune stepped out of their room, closing the door behind him. He took three steps forward, and bumped into someone.

"Oh, sorry Jaune-Jaune!" Nora apologised, as she stumbled backwards.

"No, that was my bad, I wasn't watching where I was walking," Jaune hastily apologised himself. "You and Ren headed down to Vale?"

Nora shook her head. "No, we were going to go distract Professor Goodwitch!"

Ren placed the palm of his hand ever so gently against his face, letting loose a quiet but ever-suffering sigh. "Nora, what was it that Ruby said, under no circumstances, to let Jaune and his team know?"

Nora thought for a second. "Not to mention what we were really doing?"

"And can you see why what you just said is contradictory to what Ruby wanted?"

Nora placed a single finger against her chin, thinking hard. "Ooh. Right." She turned to face Jaune, with a sheepish smile. "We're _not_ going to distract Professor Goodwitch?"

Jaune gave the ginger a conspiratorial smile. "I didn't hear it from either of you. Good luck."

Stealth and subtlety weren't AWBN's speciality, but Jaune took comfort in the fact that they were still better at it than RRYN.

* * *

It seemed like Vale was sporting a rather pleasant breeze today, and Jaune relished in it, appreciating the way the wind kept him cool as it passed through the streets, blowing his hair and coat-tails back in a way that he was unaware was surprisingly visually appealing.

The peace Jaune felt was relaxing, though he suspected it would be the calm before the storm of this coming evening, but he was willing to ignore that to enjoy the breeze.

His enjoyment lasted about two minutes, until a bug wound up in his face, crawling onto his lip and making him sputter and rub at his mouth, an uncontrollable shiver running down his spine as he tried to spit out the foul taste of insect.

It was honestly like life was actively trying to make Jaune suffer mild inconveniences as karma for having the System.

Another few minutes passed, Jaune now unable to enjoy the breeze due to his traumatic experience, until he reached 'Roust's Weapons and Armor', stepping through the door, chime sounding out as it tended to.

"Just a sec!" Came the voice of Roust, over the sounds of machinery, at odds with the pleasant surroundings. Jaune didn't reply, simply taking a seat in one of the chairs.

It was longer than a second before Roust stuck his head out of the door, that wide grin of his on his face. "Ah, Jaune, wasn't it! I've got your shield all ready, let me fetch it for ya!"

Roust emerged once more, this time carrying Jaune's sheath in his hands. "Here you go. Marvelous craftsmanship on this thing, even before I got my mitts on 'er! All repaired and ready to go, though, no thanks necessary!"

Jaune shook his head. "Thanks, though. You got this done really quick, that helps me a lot."

"Ah, no need to stroke my ego! Go thank that pretty redhead partner of yours instead, she's the one who showed you my place, and got it repaired for free, mind you," Roust exclaimed with a booming laugh. "I needed the work, gotta stay in practice now that most places are licensing out to Atlas!"

Jaune scratched at the back of his head. "I can pay you if you want…"

"What? Are you daft? That'd just make you poorer! I made a deal, and I stick to my word! Go, have fun killing those beasties, showing off and making a fool of yourself, you're young! Don't be all piteous!"

Jaune winced. "Oh, sorry."

Roust shook his head. "Gods above, boy, you are daft. Stop apologising! You've got nothin' to be sorry for! Just like that partner of yours, I swear. Go on, shoo. You've got places to be, and unless you got some business to take up with me, I've got things to work on! I'm halfway through this crossword!"

Jaune felt himself effectively verbally escorted out the door as Roust ushered him out, that massive smile still on his face.

The man's cheer was infectious, that much was clear, and as Jaune stepped out into the streets of Vale, Crocea Mors back where it belonged, the teen could barely suppress the feelings of anticipation and excitement he held for the upcoming assignment.

There was also nervousness, a tinge of fear, and a healthy amount of worry, but Jaune felt, finally, ready for whatever was going to be thrown at him.

With all that floating around in his head, it was fair to say he barely noticed the trip back to Beacon, and even if he had, he would never have noticed the green-haired figure that discreetly watched him all the while.

* * *

"I don't know."

The woman in the red dress rounded on him, her face the most furious he'd ever seen it. "What do you mean you don't know, Roman!"

Roman, for once, actually went on the defensive. "I'm telling you everything I've found out. I'm not keeping anything from you because I think it'll serve me better in the future. For once in my life, I'm being completely honest!"

Cinder swore under her breath, stepping back from the thief.

"He's good. Whether or not he's concealing some mystical voodoo shit, I don't know, but I can say he's got all of them looking to him. They follow his lead, and as far as I'm aware, most of them aren't on his team."

"Tell me again, exactly what he used," Cinder ordered, a frown gracing her face.

"Some kind of Aura blast, bigger than before, and something that acted a lot like Lightning Dust. I couldn't make out the second one, they threw up a smokescreen, but it locked me up pretty quick," Roman explained.

Cinder's frown deepened. "Then it is still up in the air. Frustrating. You may leave, Roman."

Roman was more than happy to oblige, leaving the maddened Cinder to her lonesome.

Once the thief had stepped out of the room, Cinder stood and fetched a glass from one of the cupboards, retrieving a bottle of bourbon from another, and pouring herself two fingers worth, taking a seat and mulling over the drink.

Stress was getting to her, but she would never admit it, never show it. She was supposed to be the daunting, intimidating figure of power that she presented herself as, but everything was growing more and more complicated. The potential for this boy to be a threat was becoming more and more apparent, and if what he'd done so far was any indication, he'd be a pretty significant threat were he to dedicate his time to hunting down not only Roman, but all his associates.

Or, in this case, Roman's employer.

Emerald was surveilling him, something she'd made sure to order when Roman had stumbled into the hideout covered in little bruises and scratches, muttering under his breath about meddling brats. So far, though, Emerald had reported nothing out of the ordinary for a typical Beacon student.

Which was even more frustrating. It appeared that this 'Jaune Arc' wasn't the kind of student to broadcast his power, and whilst that led credence to the theory that he had something to hide, it also meant it was all the more difficult to find evidence that supported the theory.

Without evidence, Cinder couldn't report back an affirmative, without taking serious risk.

A knock sounded at the door, and Cinder quickly downed the remaining drink, before standing and opening the door. "Yes?"

Emerald stood despondent, not meeting her employer's eyes. "I have nothing to report again, Cinder. He hasn't done anything noteworthy."

Cinder's hand tightened into a fist behind her back, teeth gritted beneath her closed lips. She would not show weakness, she would not show frustration, but she'd be damned if it wasn't starting to get to her.

"Understood. Maintain surveillance, keep me updated."

Emerald shook her head. "I can't, not for the next two weeks. The Beacon students are undergoing an assignment, they're being sent somewhere."

This perked Cinder's interest. "And you can't follow them?"

Another shake of the head. "No one knows where they are being sent, and even if we did, it'd blow my cover."

"A shame, then. Keep an eye out on Beacon, and keep an eye on the two Haven students that were seen with the others. I want to know everything we can find out about all of them. Family, friends, what they value. We need something, Emerald, I'm certain you understand."

Emerald nodded. "Of course, Cinder."

Cinder turned away from the door, leaving it open as she stepped back to her seat.

Everything was in motion, all her plans were underway, and yet Cinder knew that she'd barely even started.

And, even with the reputation Jaune Arc was building up, Cinder felt confident. He was one man, no, one boy, and he couldn't be everywhere at once.

"Oh, Emerald?"

The greenette looked up, finally meeting the dangerous gaze of her employer. "Yes, Cinder?"

"Tell Roman he has two weeks to get set up. If he takes any longer, I may not be so forgiving."

Even Emerald was afraid of what that meant.

* * *

It was time.

Six in the evening had arrived, and AWBN had filtered out of their dorm room, and were now standing at the Beacon dock, alongside the other first year teams.

Bullheads were warming up nearby, the sound carrying over the wind, but Jaune was barely paying them any attention as Professor Goodwitch closed the distance, approaching with what was either vengeful wrath or passive indifference on her face.

It was difficult to tell between the two, due to the Professor's default face being almost indecipherable.

"Students, attention, please!" Glynda called out over the sounds of the engines. "Each leader, step forward when your team is called, and you will be given your Bullhead identifier. Get you and your team aboard, it will leave when you are ready. As of right now, the assignment has begun!"

Jaune shared a glance with his team.

"CRDL!" Goodwitch called out, and Cardin swaggered up, though a fierce glance from the Professor swayed the attitude somewhat.

Jaune waited, not paying attention as Cardin and his team were given their identifier, CRDL maintaining their confident attitude as they headed towards their Bullhead, the identifier reading 'VA76T'.

Weiss appeared interested in their group, though, and Jaune turned to question her. "What's wrong, Weiss?"

Weiss looked lost in thought. "Nothing, something just seemed… off."

Jaune nodded. "If it comes to you, let me know."

"RRYN!" Goodwitch shouted over the sound of CRDL's Bullhead taking off.

Ruby stepped up and listened, nodding as Goodwitch finished, before stepping back, closing the distance between where she had been standing and where Jaune stood, waiting to be called.

"Good luck, Jaune! You're going to need it!" Ruby teased.

"Might want to save your luck, Ruby, you may need it more than I do," Jaune replied.

Ruby's response was to stick her tongue out at Jaune, who simply shrugged, watching the younger leader and her team climb aboard 'VA58L'.

"Jaune, we may have a problem," Weiss began, but she didn't get to finish, as Goodwitch called for Jaune.

Jaune nodded to Weiss, before he too stepped up to the blonde Professor.

"Team AWBN has 'VA16F'. Good luck, Mr Arc, and it was an admirable try."

Jaune scratched the back of his head, nonplussed. "Thanks?"

Jaune stepped back to his team. "We're in 'VA16F'. What's the problem, Weiss?"

Weiss looked worried. "The document had the flight numbers listed."

Jaune nodded. "And?"

Blake seemed to realise it too. "Oh no."

Now, Jaune was getting a little frustrated. "C'mon, guys, don't leave me in the dark here."

"None of the flight numbers were the flight numbers we've been given," Weiss answered.

Jaune's mouth formed a perfect 'O'.

"Either the document was old, or it was a fake," Blake muttered.

Jaune paled slightly. "Well, at least I know what Goodwitch meant."

The four of them clambered up into 'VA16F'. "What do you mean what Goodwitch meant?" Weiss asked.

"She said 'admirable try'."

Pyrrha looked nervous. "Do you think she knows what we did?"

"Yes," Jaune sighed. "And it went so well, too."

A common theme with Jaune's life, or so it would seem.

* * *

Jaune kept a wary eye on his map as they traveled, the air rushing past him far faster than the breeze had been in Vale. Less insects, though.

The Bullhead door was open, and Jaune had an arm wrapped around the handle, feet dangling out over the ground as they flew across Sanus, Pyrrha sat next to him, marveling at the sights.

"Alright kiddos, we're five minutes out!" Their pilot called out.

The leader placed his feet against the lower rail of the Bullhead and clambered up, motioning for his team to close in for a quick briefing.

"Okay, I've kept my eye on the map. We're really close to the coast, and we're a little less than a week's walk from the nearest village, so we shouldn't be too far. As long as we pay attention to our surroundings, don't get surprised, and make it to the village, we're pretty much guaranteed to make it back. Get ready for the landing, we'll set up camp and set out early tomorrow morning."

His team nodded, and Jaune stepped over to the cockpit. "Let us know when you're landing."

The pilot snorted. "Landing? Nah kid, I've got special instructions for you lot. I don't know what you did to piss off the vice-headmistress, but you're getting special treatment. Hope you can swim."

Jaune paled. "Wait, what?"

"Alright, we're here! Jump, jump, jump!" The pilot called, and as Jaune stepped back and peered out the door, all he could see was ocean beneath him.

The coast wasn't too far, maybe a couple hour's swim, but Jaune really didn't want to jump.

"C'mon, kids, Nickel International has a hefty deadline, and limited fuel! Jump now, or you fail the assignment!"

Jaune shared a glance with his team, and with a sigh, jumped out of the Bullhead.

And Gods, was it cold. It wasn't just regularly cold, it was oppressive, like it was invading his body itself.

He spluttered as he surfaced, spitting out salt water, and heard three subsequent splashes as his team joined him in the freezing water, Blake letting out a very vocal hiss when she surfaced.

As Jaune and co. floundered in the open water, the Bullhead flew off, headed back the way it came in, with a hum that decreased in volume as it increased in distance.

Jaune quickly searched around. "Over here! Land!"

The four quickly swam up to the nearest land, nearly a five minute swim away, and as they crawled onto the sandy beach, spitting out saltwater, Jaune took in their location.

This was, unfortunately, not the mainland.

This was a small island, in the middle of the ocean, an hour's swim away from the continent they needed to be on.

And they were cold, wet, and very uncomfortable.

"Well, I guess we'd better set up camp," Jaune said, as his team murmured their discomfort, Blake a little more vocal than the others as they all attempted to shake the excess water from their bodies.

And let it be known, Jaune thought, that Glynda Goodwitch had a cruel sense of humour.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Huntsman: First Steps (Part 4)**_ **]**

 **[Survive the Beacon Assignment.]**

 **[Rewards: 60,000 XP, 2 Skill Books]**

* * *

 **Well, that's that. Next week we get to camping with AWBN!**

 **You'll notice the 2 skill books as a part of the reward for the quest. One of these skill books will be a new element for _Elemental Infusion_ , and that element will be decided by a poll that will be up just shortly after this chapter goes live. Go vote for which element you want to see Jaune use!**

 **Now, onto reviews!**

 **Guest: Yeah, Sleight Of Hand is going to have a lot of uses, it's just dependent on whether or not Jaune actually uses it. Also, I'm torn between saying you forked him up or saying weird flex but okay. Decisions decisions.**

 **dirtrevor: Jaune could definitely use more luck, especially considering what happened this chapter. And next chapter, but shh. No spoilers.**

 **Adro-Sama: I actually didn't mean to imply White Knight so heavily, but it did kind of turn out that way. It also seems to imply Knightshade, and even a little bit of Arkos. Honestly, that's the great thing about Jaune, he's a flexible, malleable character, and convincing in a lot of roles. Does make it a little bit harder to imply female friendships, but I guess that's the price you have to pay.**

 **Trapdere: Aww, okay. If you don't like it that's fine, but at least leave constructive criticism, otherwise there isn't much point. I've mentioned it before, but 'A gamer fic without being awful' isn't me taking shots at other peoples work, its me taking shots at my own work. My older work is much worse than Systema.**

 **jedimasterb10: Oh god, don't start me playing MGS again. I only just stopped replaying Phantom Pain for the third time. I have way, way too many hours in it. Jaune with a Fulton, though... eesh.**

 **dwramsey99: Aww, thanks! Will do!**

 **Slenderbrine: Jaune has a knack, what can I say.**

 **Xerzo LotCN: If we're going to talk weapons, there actually isn't much point in Jaune getting a medium or high caliber weapon. His spells cover range well enough, but there is a chance he will get a sidearm, for emergencies. Jaune, canon and otherwise, is most recognizable with Crocea Mors, and I like the spell-sword kinda thing I'm working on. You do present quite a few interesting ideas, though, and when it comes to a point where I exceed the canon story, which at this rate should be within this year, I'm going to have to start making original villains, or at least weapons for them to use, so thanks for the ideas!**

 **Zathol: It's only cheating if there are rules against it. Otherwise, it's creative problem solving. :P**

 **Guest: Hey, thanks! I was kinda iffy on Pyrrha's fierceness, but I pretty much came to the same conclusion you did, I'm glad that came across!**

 **Guest: I understand where you are coming from, but as someone who not only knows people who know how to fight with and without weapons, there is a considerable difference between armed and unarmed combat, at least as far as I'm aware. Some things carry over, of course, but most techniques are completely different.**

 **And that does it for reviews this week! I have a Pa Treon, and a twitter, AFatFlyingWhale and fat_flying, so if you want to support me or just chat, come on down!**

 **Don't forget to vote for what element you want to see Jaune use next!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	27. The Assignment: Part 3

**Thanks to everyone who voted in the poll! Third place was taken by Water, with 3 votes. Second place was taken by Fire, with 5 votes. And, first place, with a whopping 34 votes was Gravity. Something tells me you guys wanted Gravity. Just a little niggling suspicion.**

 **Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Their camp was depressing. It was wet, cold, damp, freezing, and everything in between, but it was theirs.

Which made it sound a lot better than it was.

In reality, the island was more of a lump of sand and rock with some kind of tiny crevasse in the middle, with roughly three trees.

Jaune said 'roughly' due to the fact that one of the trees had already fallen over, and split in half.

It was also nearly midnight, which wasn't a pleasant time to have had to set up a campsite, considering the only person who could make out anything in the darkness was Blake, and even then it was night-vision, not dark-vision. There still had to be some natural light in order to make out definition.

Weiss, thankfully, had a solution for the lack of vision. As Jaune stumbled around in the dark, he was suddenly illuminated, and he turned to see the white-haired heiress holding Myrtenaster aloft, a glyph wrapped around the blade, providing enough light for the group to see.

Jaune nodded a thanks to the girl as he brought up his inventory, reaching in and withdrawing the bag that contained their tent, something that Jaune knew that once he brought out, there would be no stuffing the fabric back from whence it came.

Pyrrha stepped closer to Jaune, pushing wet red hair out of her face as she took the other end of the tent, and as the two unravelled and stretched it out, laying it on the sand, Blake muttered something that Jaune could barely hear.

"What was that Blake?" Jaune asked, looking to the sodden faunus.

The murmur barely increased in volume, but Jaune managed to decipher it. "I hate water."

Blake then proceeded to smack Jaune across the back of his head as he laughed.

Jaune stopped laughing, rubbing the back of his head, still wearing a grin, as he watched Blake disappear from his vision into the murky blackness. As he and Pyrrha began setting up the tent poles, Blake re-emerged, carrying what looked like a large branch in her hand.

Jaune raised the tent pole in defense. "If this is how I go out, be warned, I'm not going down without a fight!"

Blake rolled her eyes as she held the branch up to Weiss, who, understanding exactly what her partner was going for, quickly withdrew some Fire Dust from one of the cells in Myrtenaster, quickly igniting the temporary torch.

"I'm going to go get whatever firewood I can. It should help us dry off."

Jaune nodded as he and Pyrrha attempted to thread one of the tent poles through, Pyrrha using her semblance to hold them in position as she reached for another.

"Cheater."

Pyrrha snorted out a laugh. "I hadn't realised it was a competition."

Jaune laughed alongside her. "Yeah, I think Mom and Dad used to say it was in order to have us not complain about them making us set everything up. It worked, though, so I can't say it wasn't effective."

It didn't take long to set up the tent, thankfully, considering the combination of Jaune's somewhat minimal experience and Pyrrha's grasp over metal, and Weiss was glad to see Blake re-emerge from the darkness once more, this time with an armful of wood, her improvised torch having burned about a quarter down.

A quick attempt at a fire-pit was made, though it was more of a slight divot in the sand more than a pit, but as Blake piled the wood in and tossed the impromptu torch atop it, Weiss was finally able to relax, slumping onto the ground as she dismissed the glyph that had been providing their illumination.

Jaune hit the sand with his rear almost as quick as Weiss had, keeping his hands near the flickering heat that their fire-pit now possessed.

Blake and Pyrrha placed themselves down as well, and the four sat in silence, listening to the crackling of wood as it succumbed to the entropic reality it found itself in.

"We should turn in pretty soon, we're going to have to get up early if we want to get a good start," Jaune began, after a short time.

"An early start for what, a long swim?" Weiss pointed out.

"It isn't like we have any better options. It isn't all that far, we could easily make it," Jaune replied.

Blake shook her head. "I don't think you understand, Jaune. We were lucky we weren't attacked when we got dropped in. These waters are crawling with aquatic Grimm."

Jaune shrugged. "Well, I'm all ears for an idea. Otherwise, we're gonna have to swim."

Silence once again befell their camp as they ceased the discussion, embroiled in their own thoughts.

Jaune spoke up again. "Weiss, do you think you could keep us above the water with your glyphs?"

"It depends on the distance, size, time and weight," Weiss explained. "Theoretically, I could, but there are a lot of calculations behind it."

Jaune looked to the side as he brought up his map. "If I'm reading this right, we're nearly twenty kilometers offshore."

Weiss hummed in thought. "If that's the case, I might be able to make a path, but we'll have to move fast. Very fast."

Pyrrha looked to her partner. "Do you have anything we can use to increase our speed?"

Jaune brought up his skill list, dismissing his map. "Hold on, let me look."

He quickly read through it, before shaking his head. "Damn. All my skills affect me, but I can't really give them to you. That sucks."

Pyrrha turned to Weiss. "Exactly how fast do we need to move?"

"I don't have an exact figure, the calculations are too complex for even myself to be able to perform. The amount of variables make it far too complicated. But, as fast as you can move would be preferable," The white-haired heiress answered.

"None of us bar Jaune are able to reach Ruby-like speeds, but I can use my semblance to provide a quick boost forwards," Blake said, and Pyrrha nodded.

"I can use mine to apply an accelerated magnetic effect to my armor. It should propel me forwards slightly faster," Pyrrha followed up.

"The faster anybody gets off the glyphs, the better. Less weight means more Aura, so I can keep them up for longer. The problem is, I can't make the entire glyph bridge in one go," Weiss explained.

That made things significantly more complicated. Jaune frowned in thought for a moment. "Well, I could always give you a piggy-back ride."

Weiss looked at her leader, an offended expression on her face.

"Sorry I offered?"

Pyrrha stifled a laugh. "Jaune's offer isn't all that bad an idea, considering how fast he can move."

"But then we'd be left behind, with a rapidly disappearing bridge," Blake pointed out.

"True. This is much more complicated an affair than I had expected."

Jaune nodded in agreement with his partner. "I still think we could make the swim. Worst comes to worst, we kill some Grimm. I think we should take the risk, the glyph bridge is a good idea, but in practice, it's a bit too complicated to execute over twenty kilometers."

"I… have to agree. We don't have another option that I can think of," Weiss said, placing her hand against her head.

Blake swore under her breath. "Do we have no other option whatsoever?"

Jaune opened his mouth, and Blake held up a finger, silencing him. "Don't do it."

Jaune just shut his mouth, forming a smile.

"What is it with blond hair and stupidity, I swear."

* * *

The fire was sparking embers into the air where they caught the wind, drifting into the ocean to flicker and die as the waters snuffed the burning.

Jaune and his team were about to turn in for the night.

"Who is going to stay on watch?"

The question lingered in the air. There were only a few hours until dawn, but they still needed some amount of sleep.

"I'll do it," Jaune said, motioning for the girls to climb into the tent. "It's not like I won't be able to do anything if I don't rest."

There was no objection, not that Jaune had expected one, and as the three female members of AWBN clambered inside the tent, Jaune stayed sat upon the sand, watching the pitch-black water lap at the wet sand not too far from his feet.

It wasn't long before something occurred to Jaune, and the boy quietly summoned Cadejo and Alcmena. The two appeared out of the misty blackness that congealed from his own shadow, and Alcmena quickly and quietly took flight, combing the skies for any potential threat.

Cadejo, however, silently padded over to Jaune and lay down behind him, curling the teen within his thick fur, allowing him to lean against the lean muscles the wolf-summon possessed.

Jaune could sleep, now, should he wish too, his summons did not need sleep, or if they did, he assumed they got their sleep whilst they spent their time wherever they went when he de-summoned them. They would alert him if something happened, of course, the eternal watchers that they were.

Jaune reached an arm out and rubbed Cadejo behind the ear, the wolf's tail wagging, quietly thumping against the sand as Jaune slipped into a silent, comfortable unconsciousness, the Beowolf Soul remaining ever vigilant, as did Alcmena, the Stymphalian Soul finding the one of the few trees and settling into it, vivid eyes watching over their campsite in the most literal kind of birds-eye-view.

And as Jaune slept, he dreamt of a black nothingness that seemed to stretch on forever, and yet felt close enough to touch.

* * *

Morning broke quickly, not even four hours after Jaune had drifted off, and his eyes flickered as the sunlight beamed down on his face. He stirred, shaking his head to disrupt his drowsiness, and stared around their campsite, finally able to make out actual detail to the island.

It was exactly what he'd expected, of course, but the ravine, or crevasse, or whatever it was that was in the near center drew Jaune's attention the most. Something about it seemed strange, unnatural, but Jaune paid it no more attention as Cadejo stood up and stretched, the wolf placing its head under Jaune's hand.

Jaune knew what Cadejo was after, and as he scratched behind the pleased summon's ear, the tent made a zipping noise.

Pyrrha quietly exited the tent and zipped it back up behind her, the girl wearing her usual sleepwear.

"Morning Pyrrha," Jaune greeted in a half-whisper, surprised that she was the first up. "You aren't usually our earliest riser."

The girl gave a sleepy smile. "Sleeping on our mats is uncomfortable enough without trying to spend extra time on them. Figured I might as well get up and help make breakfast."

The fire had crackled and died during the early morning hours, but the embers were still warm, and it was easy enough with the added light from the sun for Pyrrha to quickly gather the rest of whatever kindling could be found on the ground, placing it in their fire-pit and ushering a flame back to life.

Jaune, meanwhile, entered his inventory and withdrew what he had decided to test the limits of said inventory with.

Not the frying pan, of course, though that was the first thing he drew out, but a package of still cold sausages. Pork, if he was reading the label right.

Which, well, he was, because he could read.

That wasn't the point of what Jaune was trying to get at. The point was that the sausages were still cold, which led credence to the fact that Jaune's inventory existed outside of regular space-time.

Or was just chilled like a fridge. It was either or, and it made no real difference for right this moment, as Jaune gently placed the frying pan on the flames, waited for the pan to heat, and dumped the package of sausages onto it.

It didn't take long for the pale flesh to brown as it cooked, and Pyrrha used her semblance to lift the pan out of the fire, tipping the sausages onto a large platter that Jaune had also stored in his inventory, before dunking the pan in the nearby water to cool it off.

Whilst Pyrrha handled the levitating frying pan, Jaune unzipped the tent. "Rise and shine you two. Breakfast is ready, we've got a long day ahead of us."

Blake and Weiss stirred, the former's eyes snapping open, the latter groaning in discomfort.

"Ugh. Morning already?" Weiss moaned, lifting herself to a sitting position.

"Sorry I can't make it not morning. Come on, breakfast is served."

Jaune stepped back out of the tent, pursued by both Blake and Weiss, both also wearing their sleepwear, having been as smart as Pyrrha in hanging their clothes to dry.

Jaune wished he had of done that, but considering they were going to get wet today anyway, it wasn't as if it mattered all that much. Besides, he'd pretty much dried out last night.

The four sat down back into the sand, where they'd sat the night before, and Jaune passed around some paper plates and plastic cutlery, and they quickly began to devour their breakfast, Jaune leaning against Cadejo's body once more as the wolf enjoyed his own sausage.

It wasn't as if the summons needed sustenance, of course, but the wolf seemed to have, almost expectedly, mastered the art of puppy-dog eyes.

Or Ruby had taught him. Jaune wouldn't even be that surprised, whenever the group was training Ruby was one of the more vocal about seeing Cadejo. Weiss was, too, but it was less of a surprise when Ruby demanded the fluffy wolf train with them.

Luckily, Pyrrha had bonded rather strongly with Alcmena, something that might've had to do with their shared Mistralian heritage, as the bird was sat on Pyrrha's shoulder, enjoying her own piece of sausage.

Jaune had to admit, it wasn't a very varied breakfast, nor was it a particularly pleasant one, with the knowledge that they were about to plunge into Grimm-infested water for some time, but Jaune knew they had no other option. As did his team, from the bittersweet looks on their faces.

Despite breakfast being a somewhat depressing affair, the leader of AWBN was at least looking forward to the coming days. So what they had to swim for twenty kilometers, and so what that it was in Grimm-infested water. Jaune had confidence, he had faith, and, most of all, he had his team.

There was absolutely, without a doubt, nothing that could even possibly go wrong.

Cadejo released a growl, and Jaune swivelled his head towards the center of the island.

"Please. Please don't be something. Please just be something small, like a Beowolf."

It was not a Beowolf.

Jaune let out a groan as he stood up, Cadejo joining his side. His team went to retrieve their weapons, but the teen just held up his hand. "I'll handle it, just keep eating. You guys get to pack up the tent though."

As Jaune stepped towards the crevasse, the Grimm that had crawled out of it screeched at him.

As the large Deathstalker crawled towards Jaune, the teen brought up his hand, and a quick cast and throw of a _Lightning Infused Mana Grenade_ hit the scorpion Grimm, the thing screaming as the explosion wiped a chunk of its left pincer clean off, crackling energy sparking off in bright arcs of electricity.

The Grimm wasn't nearly as big as the Elder Deathstalker from the initiation, thankfully, but it was of a much higher level. It was smaller than it had been only seconds before, too, as Jaune hit it with a fully charged _Mana Pulse_ , removing the entire face-plate and most of the face along with it, the Deathstalker crumpling to the sand, smoke and black viscera dissipating into the clear morning sky.

Of course, another decided to make itself known, clambering out of the crevasse and screeching, pincers clicking in righteous fury as it decided to avenge its fallen brethren.

Of course, Jaune had been slowly but surely regenerating Mana, but it was nowhere near enough for a repeat performance against the second Deathstalker.

"Might want to hurry up and finish, there are more of them!" Jaune called out, as Cadejo kept the Deathstalker's aggression focused away from the teen, nipping and snapping at the monster, but never making contact, the plating proving to be too thick for the Beowolf Soul's fangs to penetrate.

Alcmena swept into the sky, causing a rain of bronze feathery projectiles to impact against the chitinous armor of the second Deathstalker, though it tanked them as well, the sharp feathers just not sharp enough to do anything but chip away at the plates.

Jaune parried a giant pincer with his blade, Crocea Mors sweeping up the unplated part of the appendage and carving a gash that leaked black blood and smoke, as the Deathstalker screeched in pain, flinging the giant stinger on the tail towards the teen.

It never made it however, as a black blade swept straight through the joining flesh at the base of the stinger, severing it as Blake flipped backwards off the top of the Deathstalker, landing next to her leader.

The Deathstalker once again screeched, before backing away towards the crevasse, chittering all the while.

"You seem to have a knack at making friends, Jaune," Blake remarked, raising Gambol Shroud and firing a burst, bullets pockmarking the front of the Deathstalker, one lucky bullet popping an eyeball with a sickening splat-like sound.

"What can I say, I'm a likeable guy," Jaune replied in turn, casting a _Mana Bullet_ and firing it, the six bullets of Mana impacting against the plating and dispersing Mana as it finally died, slumping back and slipping into the crevasse.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 144,000 XP!]**

 **[You've reached Level 25! +5 Stat Points!]**

 **[Title Rank Up: Huntsman Apprentice is now Huntsman Adept!]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[ERROR: WAITING FOR UPDATE]**

Jaune ignored the notifications, more concerned with the hole the Grimm had crawled out of, quickly stepping closer and peering into the entrance of the crevasse, rocks casting deep shadows until they all mixed together, blotting out the sunlight down below. "Huh."

Blake stepped up next to him and peered in herself. "I can't see the bottom."

As Pyrrha and Weiss joined them, having rapidly packed up the camp into a scrambled mess of a bag, Jaune decided to try something.

Every single time Jaune had created a spell or a skill that used Mana, Jaune had focused Mana into a part of him, or molded it in his hand.

So, without any further adieu, Jaune pushed Mana into his eyes, hoping it wouldn't either make them explode, or create some kind of eyeball laser.

Though the thought of eyeball lasers was pretty cool, it was not what happened.

He could feel his eyes, which was strange enough to begin with, but as Blake, Weiss and Pyrrha stopped looking down the crevasse and at Jaune, who's pupils had turned blue instead of the typical black, Jaune continued to stare into the darkened hole.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Sight (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can infuse your eyes with Mana, giving you the ability to see hostile targets in glowing red, friendlies in glowing blue, and unconfirmed targets in glowing yellow. Costs 30 MP to cast, lasts 1 minute._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

The bottom of the pit glowed yellow, but it did so in a way that Jaune could make out the shape of the lowest point.

"Is a cube a naturally forming shape?" Jaune wondered aloud, and the words seemed to capture Weiss's attention, momentarily distracting her from Jaune's strange eyes.

"No, of course not. Why?"

Jaune described what he could see, still peering down into the crevasse.

"Something's off. This island is far too small to hold a natural cave such as this, especially one so… square," Weiss said, concern etched on her face.

"I think we should investigate. We've got plenty of time to make it back to Vale, and this seems to be a little bit more interesting than a long swim," Jaune said. "All in favor?"

Blake, when faced with the option of a swim, unsurprisingly chose the other option. Pyrrha looked as if she was happy to do either, choosing to abstain, and Weiss frowned, something on her mind.

"This is all well and good, Jaune, but even if we do decide to investigate, the biggest problem is; how do we get down there?"

Jaune stared in thought, mind whirling as he considered his options, before three things happened.

First, the swarm of yellow glowing things suddenly coalesced into a single trailing line of red. Second, his _Danger Sense_ triggered, warning him of an impending threat.

The third and final thing that happened was the maw of a giant Grimm worm gripped onto Jaune's leg and dragged him into the murky depths of the pit, body smacking against the surrounding earth at the entrance as it did so, dislodging a significant amount of it.

Jaune shouted in both surprise and pain as his leg almost felt like it was being torn apart by a million buzzsaws, even as he plunged deeper and deeper into the crevasse, and three shouts of fear and surprise could be heard following him soon after, as his three friends toppled end over end in the air above him, doing their best to not hit the tightening edges of the drop.

What seemed to last forever ended abruptly as Jaune slammed into solid ground with a bone-snapping crack and an exhaustive wheeze as his Aura was reduced to less than a quarter from the impact.

The worm-like Grimm still had a grip on his leg, but Jaune was unable to see it, the pitch-black darkness of his impact zone making it all the more intense as he called upon what Mana he'd managed to regenerate, and fired a point-blank _Mana Pulse_ at where he knew it was chewing away at his limb-flesh.

The good news was, the worm-thing no longer had a grip on his leg.

The bad news, that was because his leg had separated from his body, and Jaune realised this as he let out a scream of agony as his Aura shattered around him, _System Body_ overtaxed and unable to heal the injury as fast as usual, already working overtime on his spine, repairing the practically pulverised bone structure as fast as it could.

Not that Jaune could tell in the pain-ladened pitch-black fugue he was currently experiencing, his team, thanks to the fact that they didn't have giant Grimm worms feasting away on chunks of their flesh, had landed relatively safely, pulling out various landing techniques that, had Jaune been able to see, would have reminded him of what had been suggested to him to do in the Initiation, so long ago now.

The lingering light from the displaced Mana from the _Mana Pulse_ had temporarily illuminated the darkness, and whilst Jaune was finding it rather difficult to focus on anything but the worm, the bottom of the pit was, as expected, in a cube-like shape, carved stone worn deep with furrows, and a single, pockmarked hole in the wall.

The light, by now, had already faded, but it soon reappeared in rapid, flickering bursts as Blake opened fire, bullets puncturing into the charcoal flesh of the worm as it writhed about soundlessly.

It was almost disconcerting how the worm made no noise, even as bullets penetrated its eyeless form, razor-like teeth spinning on the inside of its circular opening of a mouth.

Then, almost as suddenly as it had appeared, it left, the only noise it made the grinding of stone and earth in its ever-consuming mouth as it created a new tunnel, burrowing down further into the ground and effectively traversing an incredible distance in a matter of moments.

Jaune, of course, didn't notice any of that either, as he clutched at his bleeding stump of a leg, biting down hard on a loose part of his glove to prevent him from severing his tongue or shattering his teeth from the pressure.

"Jaune!" Pyrrha called out, blindly reaching out in the darkness, trying to find her way to her partner. Weiss only just managed to grab Myrtenaster and create a glyph bright enough to provide some light, but it would be temporary. Weiss wasn't in the possession of the most potent Aura out of all of Beacon.

Three sets of eyes adjusted to the bright light. Three sets of eyes saw Jaune on the floor, a bloody puddle near the remaining chunk of his left leg.

The three rushed to his side quickly, and whilst Blake was at least somewhat aware of the kind of medical procedure might be required for a missing limb, and Pyrrha and Weiss had some training through Beacon, much like Jaune, they were missing a few crucial supplies.

Jaune released his bite on his glove, even as the pain throbbed, and spoke. "I'm a little stumped at what to do about this."

Never had three people wanted to hit a fourth more than at that point in time, in a pitch black pit in the middle of the wilderness, with less than two weeks to get back to civilization, or fail their assignment.

And Jaune was missing a leg.

This could've gone better.

* * *

 **That does it for this week, but before I get into reviews, I have an important message!**

 **Systema will be delayed one day next week, and all further chapter updates will occur on the Friday instead of the** **Thursday.** **My timetable means I have a 10 hour day on Thursday, unfortunately, so I won't have time to edit and upload a chapter, and am now moving it back a day. Still should have weekly updates though!**

 **Now, for reviews!**

 **Guest: Unfortunately, at the moment, no. He has to physically move it into or out of a slot in order for it to enter/exit his inventory, but that may change at some point with a new skill. You'll have to wait and see!**

 **Ints: I'm pretty sure I've been making it clear enough that Jaune doesn't just have a regular semblance. Ozpin has pointed out it's actual magic, something analogous to the Maidens, and, shh, but it isn't Cinder who's demanded this... Besides, as far as you are aware, they haven't changed their plan. Glad you're enjoying though!**

 **Bloodfox22: I'm probably not, I'm not that smart. Though, when you mentioned it, it may occurred to me. Send me a PM if you want, let me know what you mean! I'm curious too now.**

 **jedimasterb10: As an Aussie, I can safely say the Nutri-Grain Iron Man is best Iron Man competition, and Kellogs would probably try and sue me if I said anything different. Also, technically Jaune's still in one piece.**

 **Adro-Sama: Think of your strictest teacher from high school and then give her a riding crop and telekinesis. Of course she's terrifying! Really god damned hot, though. Wish my teachers had been like that.**

 **razmire: Whilst not on the poll, Poison is an interesting choice. Jaune already has a poison perk, from Alcmena, but I haven't actually had it take effect yet, it seems that Jaune kills things too fast.**

 **guest: ...I brought this upon myself.**

 **FORD B: I was never very good at making twists. At least, that's what I tell people.**

 **Shonisto: I'm now going to have to google what summon night is. And yes, Jaune will be developing a crafting skill soon tm. I know I keep saying it, but it will happen. We haven't even left volume 2 yet!**

 **Shirosaki Kizuro: I don't think I could do that to myself. It physically hurts me to write puns, and yet I seem to have a masochistic pun-dency.**

 **Guest: If Jaune was ever observant, I'm sure we'd never get to see the entertaining messes he walks himself into. At least he hasn't stuck his foot in his mouth too severely yet, and hey... now he's got half as many chances!**

 **That about does it for my shitty puns this week, next chapter goes up Friday not Thursday, I'm on twitter fat_flying and Pa Treon AFatFlyingWhale**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	28. The Assignment: Part 4

**Welcome to Friday, the new day for chapters. Hope you enjoy this one!**

* * *

Pain. Lots and lots of pain. And darkness, lit only by the tiny amount of illumination that Weiss was providing, conserving as much Aura as she could in order to maintain the light.

"We should've brought a lantern," Jaune groaned, as Pyrrha and Blake helped haul him backwards towards the far wall, away from the two cylindrical openings.

"Lessons for next time I suppose," Weiss muttered, doing her best to look anywhere but at the missing limb.

"Jaune, are you going to be alright?" Pyrrha asked, her voice tinged deeply with desperation.

Jaune nodded stiffly, as he leant against the wall, pulling himself up into a seated position. "I can feel it healing now. I don't know how long it's going to take, and it hurts like all hell, but I should be fine soon enough. That's not the biggest problem, though."

Blake nodded in agreement. "Getting out of here seems like it's a little bit more complicated than we had first thought. It isn't a straight climb."

Blake's statement was punctuated with a quiet rumbling from overhead, like a thousand stampeding animals on the surface.

The sound prompted the four to stare upwards warily, waiting in silence. It passed soon, however, and nothing attacked them, to which Jaune was incredibly grateful.

"What was that thing?" Jaune asked, still staring upwards into the murky blackness. "It felt like I was being swallowed by a million chainsaws."

His team winced in unison, something that brought a mild amount of morbid amusement to his pain-addled mind.

Despite the fact that his team was comprised of possibly the most diligent students in their year, and Jaune, none of them seemed to be able to identify the Grimm, and Jaune had been slightly occupied with the whole losing-a-leg thing, so much so that he hadn't had the time nor the wherewithal to use _Observe_ on it.

His leg was already healing faster and faster as the rest of the damage his body had suffered was now repaired, and even as Blake watched the stump in morbid fascination as the flesh re-wove itself and the bone latticed itself back into place, now halfway through reconstructing his thigh, Jaune wasn't paying it the slightest bit of attention, partially because thinking about it brought the pain to the forefront of his mind, but mostly because he was busy using the low light of Weiss's glyph to gain some kind of insight into what their next move was to be.

"Whatever it was, it might be coming back. We need to move, and fast," Blake said, her night-vision coming in handy as she too kept an eye on their surroundings. "I don't see a way out, though."

Jaune's leg was already healed up to the ankle, and it would be less than a minute before it was completely repaired, though he was missing a boot and most of his pants leg.

His poor, new boot and pants.

"I have a suggestion, but you won't like it," Jaune began. "We could go through the tunnel, it has to exit somewhere."

"The tunnel that was dug by the giant Grimm worm," Weiss said. Jaune nodded. "The one that just ate your leg."

"I mean, do you have a better idea? The tunnel at least is headed in the same direction as the shore," Jaune pointed out, as he flexed his newly formed ankle, watching the end of his foot restructure itself.

Weiss sighed, and the light she was providing flickered slightly as she did so. "The problem, Jaune, is that I don't know how long I can keep this light going."

Jaune wiggled the toes on his bare foot, reveling in the lack of pain that he was feeling, and hoisted himself to a standing position. "Just keep it going as long as you can, Weiss. I'll try and figure something out."

Jaune stepped closer to the far wall, peering deep into the mouth of the tunnel, which looked as intimidating as any chunk of worn stone possibly could. It was more about the implication of the tunnel than the tunnel itself, though.

"Jaune, I really don't like this plan," Pyrrha mentioned, standing next to her partner.

"Do we have any other options? I'm really, really open to any ideas."

Pyrrha was conspicuously silent, and Jaune sighed. "Looks like the tunnel it is."

The dark maw of the tunnel eyed the four figures who stood in front of it, echoing silence filling the cavern.

There was one hell of a trip ahead of them.

* * *

They'd been walking for nearly two hours now.

And nothing. Weiss's light was incredibly dim now, and the girl herself looked exhausted, but despite all that, Jaune was still struggling with his Mana. He couldn't make a light spell, and he'd been trying since they'd set out.

Occasionally, Jaune would manage to make his hand glow bright with Mana, only for it to disperse, as he lost control, or for him to accidentally form it into a spell he already knew.

"Damn it!" Jaune swore aloud, as his latest attempt failed for the umpteenth time.

Blake glanced back, as Jaune began once more. "Jaune, are you sure you're going about it the right way?"

Jaune glanced up to the amber eyes of his teammate. "No, Blake. I'm not."

Jaune was frustrated, and Blake could tell he hadn't meant to sound so aggressive. "Explain to us what you're trying to do. Even if it doesn't help, it'll at least give us something to take our mind off this tunnel."

Jaune was more than grateful to have an opportunity to distract himself from his failed attempts. "I'm trying to make the Mana stay in my hand without having to constantly focus on it, so it provides light."

"And you can't just do that with a regular spell?" Pyrrha asked, looking over to her partner.

Jaune acknowledged the addition to the conversation with a slight shake of his head. "It isn't that easy. The longer I hold the spell, the more it destabilizes. Otherwise I'd just walk around with a supercharged _Mana Pulse_ all the time, just in case. I can hold it for a little while, but it takes the majority of my concentration."

Weiss, even as fatigued as she was, was still a valuable asset for Jaune's learning of spell creation. "Have you tried creating a spell that is separate from your body, like your _Spell Sigils_?"

Jaune once again shook his head. "No… You might be onto something, Weiss. Hold on."

Jaune focused inwards once more, pulling Mana from wherever he stored it, forming it in his hand as it glowed bright, and willed it to float, and to glow.

And, for the first time in two hours, it obeyed.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Candlelight (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can create a floating source of light that can be controlled at will. Costs 40 MP to cast._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

"Ugh, finally!" Weiss exclaimed, before Jaune or Blake or even Pyrrha could react, slumping to the ground and releasing her hold over the glyph she'd kept anchored to Myrtenaster for far, far too long.

Jaune knelt down and wrapped one of her arms around his shoulder, heaving her to her feet and effectively slinging her over his shoulder in a fireman's carry. "Thanks for the help, Weiss."

Weiss mumbled something incoherent, and Jaune realized the situation was a little bit more dire than he had suspected. It wasn't severe Aura depletion, thankfully, but Weiss was drowsy and almost out of it. She'd be down and out for a few hours at least.

Jaune could feel the presence of the _Candlelight_ at the edge of his consciousness, and he willed it to follow them, and as they continued moving, glowing blue orb floating in the air just behind them, Jaune finally felt like they were making good progress.

Thankfully, Weiss wasn't heavy at all, and Jaune had a pretty hefty amount of strength, at least compared to the rest of his team. As far as he was aware, of course.

They traveled like that for nearly another hour, the eerie silence in the tunnel proving to be as disconcerting as it was useful for hearing approaching threats.

Which was, coincidentally, exactly what Blake heard, dropping low to the ground and drawing Gambol Shroud, pointing it warily into the darkness. "Something's coming!" She whispered, more of a hiss than anything else, and Jaune quickly backed up a few steps and lay the exhausted Weiss on the ground, before drawing Crocea Mors and his shield, holding them in preparation for the oncoming threat.

"Please don't be the worm, please don't be the worm," Jaune muttered under his breath as, soon enough, the sounds Blake had heard reached his ears as well.

The good news was, it didn't sound like the worm. Instead, it sounded like swift, light footsteps, padding quickly towards them.

Jaune summoned Cadejo to his side, the wolf climbing out of Jaune's very dim shadow and stepping between the oncoming threats and Weiss, the wolf's hackles raised as he snarled quietly.

Alcmena was not summoned, the bird wouldn't exactly be all that beneficial in such a tight, close-quarters environment, but that was fine with Jaune. He couldn't rely on his summons to do the work for him, after all.

The footsteps grew closer and closer still, but they were no closer to being able to make out any visible shapes in the darkness.

"What's coming, Blake? Can you see them?" Jaune asked, as Pyrrha knelt next to him, rifle braced against her shield.

Blake shook her head, stepping back and standing alongside Pyrrha, aiming down the tunnel, waiting.

Jaune replaced Crocea Mors back into his newly repaired sheath, but kept the shield deployed. He'd need it soon, or so he felt, but he wanted a free hand for what was coming.

Blake's eyes narrowed as something in the darkness stirred, and she opened fire, the muzzle flash illuminating the approaching targets.

Creeps. Jaune recognized them from his time in Port's classes, though not for lack of trying to block those particular memories. Even now one wormed its way to the forefront of his mind as Pyrrha and Blake gunned down Creep after Creep.

Jaune shook his head to clear that particular segment of story from his head, now was not an appreciative time to have the mental image of a naked Port covered in ash and dirt when he needed coherent, sensible strategic thought.

He also decided against using _Mana Quake_ , because he didn't want to collapse the entire tunnel atop them. They'd nearly been crushed to death before, it wasn't a fun experience.

So, as Jaune observed the approaching Creeps to get a feel for their rough HP, he came up with a plan. Well, an idea of one anyway.

 **[Creep]**

 **[Grimm, Level 25]**

 **[HP: 500/500]**

Good news was, individual Creeps were incredibly weak, and not all that dangerous.

Of course, good news always came with bad news, and the bad news was, in this instance, multiplicative. They were stuck in a straight tunnel with no cover, there were a lot of Creeps, and Jaune was really really worried that the fighting might attract the giant worm again.

Jaune figured that he'd need to use his cheap spells, Mana being a resource he needed to maintain. This was a battle of attrition against a greater force, and he didn't want the Creep swarm to get close.

Of course, as he fired a _Mana Bolt_ that did virtually no damage, Jaune was a little worried. He'd been neglecting that skill, and now he was going to pay for it.

 _Mana Arrow_ was his next best option, and with six arrows per cast, he could space it out, doing a reasonable amount of damage across the swarm, meaning it took less bullets for Blake and Pyrrha to pick them off. It was good, but it wasn't great.

Even with the low Mana cost of _Mana Arrow_ , there were too many Creeps for Jaune, Pyrrha and Blake to target with individual fire. This would be a situation that Nora or Yang would appreciate, a target rich environment in close quarters.

Unfortunately, they weren't here, and Jaune was a little wary of using explosives. That meant that _Mana Grenade_ was out of the question, unless he decided to throw caution to the wind.

That left Jaune with a few options, and as he wracked his brain to remember what he could do, something popped up. A memory, not so long ago, with a giant snake.

Jaune cast _Mana Calamity_ , and watched as molecules of Mana appeared in the tunnel, latching onto Grimm and sapping away.

Some of the previously wounded Creeps simply dropped onto the ground, skidding to a stop, and others stumbled about, snapping and biting at the Mana, which simply stuck to their mouths instead of wherever it had been before, causing even more pain.

"We've got less than a minute before that goes down! Do what you can!" Jaune shouted as he sprinted forwards, Crocea Mors already flickering out of its sheath, the blade cutting through the nearest Grimm.

Tiny orbs of Mana swayed out of the way as Jaune cut his way through the Creep horde, and not a single one managed to land an attack, either blocked, parried, cut down or simply drained by the _Mana Calamity_.

Unfortunately, there were far too many to be killed in a single minute, even as Pyrrha and Blake cut down as many as Jaune had. It seemed like it was an endless swarm, constantly emerging from the darkness of the tunnel.

Jaune needed to do something, and he needed to do it quickly, before they were overwhelmed. Cadejo was already snapping his jaw down on a Creep that had, well, crept its way closer to Weiss.

And, as seemed to be the theme of Jaune's life so far, he tried something new, placing his hand to the ground and pushing Mana into it.

He was wary of any kind of quake, but that wasn't what he willed the Mana to do. Instead, he willed the very earth to move.

His Mana responded, and Jaune could hear what was possibly the most indescribable sound he'd ever heard as a torrent of stone and earth bent to his will, and formed a giant wall between them, sealing the majority of the Creep swarm behind solid stone.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Terrakinesis (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can shape the ground around you into various forms, with minimal effort. Costs 4 MP/s._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

Jaune slumped backwards as Cadejo leapt into the fray, no longer bound by the order to defend Weiss from the swarm, instead taking initiative and killing nearly every Creep the wolf-summon could see, the weak Grimm putting up no fight as the _Mana Calamity_ finally wore off, leaving crippled Grimm in its wake, that were quickly finished off.

"I don't know how long that will hold them," Jaune said as he clambered back to his feet, balancing on his sword, pointed into the ground.

"Long enough for us to figure something out, I hope. There had to be thousands of them, I couldn't see an end to them," Blake said, as she pulled the sheath of Gambol Shroud out of the head of the final once-living Creep.

"I'm sure we can think of something," Jaune remarked. "Weiss, you okay?"

Weiss was currently using Cadejo as a method of standing, the wolf-summon helping the white-haired heiress stand. "I'm exhausted. I can walk, I think, but I don't think I'll be fighting any time soon. Using my semblance for so long appears to have rather… painful side effects."

"At least you're up. Any ideas?" Jaune asked.

Weiss glared at her leader. "I'm starting to get sick of hearing you ask that. Just once, I'd like a regular day where something catastrophic doesn't happen."

Jaune shrugged. "In my defense, it isn't like I'm doing this on purpose."

His head quickly swiveled as he finished that sentence, as the scrabbling on the other side of the wall Jaune had constructed grew louder and more frequent.

"We really don't have long!"

* * *

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 178,750 XP!]**

 **[You have unread notifications waiting!]**

"Jaune, if your new idea is more tunnels, I'm going to hurt you," Weiss exclaimed, glaring at her leader, a recurring theme.

"Before you get all stabby, bear in mind, I'll be the one making the tunnels, we won't be delving into a giant worm tunnel again," Jaune replied. "I should be able to tunnel us upwards on an angle, so we can reach the surface."

"And if you misjudge the distance we've travelled and we open the ceiling to a torrent of seawater?"

Jaune opened his mouth to rebut, but Weiss made an excellent point. "It won't happen. I won't let it."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "That's really reassuring, Arc."

"Back to calling me Arc, huh. I thought we'd made some real progress."

"Can you two stop sniping at each other before those Grimm break through and tear us to pieces?" Blake snapped, interrupting.

Jaune nodded, nearing the wall and beginning to use _Terrakinesis_ , carving a small hole into it. He widened it quickly, until it was big enough for the four to walk in two abreast, and began to move through, motioning for his team to follow.

"It costs a fair bit of Mana per second, but I think my regeneration is more than enough to cover it. Come on, we need to move."

His team, plus Cadejo, who was acting as Weiss's support wolf, stepped into the small tunnel Jaune had begun, and as Jaune began to seal it behind him, Blake stopped him.

"Don't seal it completely. We still need air."

Jaune paled. "That would've been bad." He quickly carved a few air holes, discreetly slanted so as not to be obvious to a cursory inspection. "There we go. Shall we?"

As Jaune turned and began carving a tunnel forwards and slightly up, his team and Cadejo followed him, slowly but surely marching their way towards the surface, Jaune's _Candlelight_ floating behind them, still providing light.

' _Another long trek lies ahead, I guess.'_

* * *

Jaune had been right. It was another long trek. And, worst of all, Jaune had realised that all their camping gear was still on that tiny island.

They'd been climbing for nearly an hour, now, and whilst Jaune had been pushing his way past loose sediment, condensing it to the sides of the tunnel with enough force to turn it to rock, so far he hadn't seen any tree roots, or anything that might indicate that the surface was close.

So when he carved a hole like usual and instead of more brown-grey earth there was sunlight, Jaune found himself blind. So did Weiss, and so did Pyrrha, and Blake seemed to suffer the worst, hissing as the light reached her eyes.

At least they'd made it to the surface.

Jaune climbed out of the hole in the ground he'd made, slumping to the ground in sheer exhaustion. "I hate this."

Pyrrha joined him, laying on her back and closing her eyes, not even caring about the dirt in her hair. "I'd like to never do that again."

Blake was next, still covering her eyes. "I'm going to murder Goodwitch, I think."

Weiss and Cadejo climbed out last, the wolf seeming tired despite rather literally being an indomitable, untiring soul, and as the summon lay down, Weiss effectively face-planted into the wolf's furry side. "I hate you Arc," She said, though it came out muffled and distorted by the fur.

They lay there for at least ten minutes, relishing in the feeling of stillness, before Jaune sat up. "We can't sit out here any longer, we're too exposed."

Blake, having recovered somewhat from being blinded, sat up and looked around. "We left the camping gear behind, didn't we."

Jaune nodded his head sadly. "Yeah. Not our fault, but it still sucks."

Then, Jaune had a brilliant idea. "Wait here a second. I've had an idea."

Weiss groaned.

"Trust me, you'll appreciate this one. Or, well, I hope you will. Uh…"

Weiss turned her head to glare at Jaune, as Blake gave up and slumped back down. "Arc, just shut up and do it."

Jaune promptly did as he was asked, shutting up and walking about thirty feet away.

He felt for his control over the earth, _Terrakinesis_ activating as he began to shape the stone and dirt, compacting the looser particles into what he needed.

It took nearly five minutes of shaping, but soon, he had what he needed.

Pyrrha had wandered over slightly before he finished, but she was yet to say anything, still staring in slight shock at what Jaune had created.

"Jaune, you've built a house."

Jaune hummed in agreement. "Yep."

"Huh."

Jaune used _Terrakinesis_ to open the stone door, and gestured to his partner. "Ladies first?"

Pyrrha was still in a bit of shock as she stepped over the threshold, into what was basically an identical copy of their dorm room, made entirely of compacted stone. "Huh."

"I kinda figured I'd make it familiar, you know? Easier to recreate from memory."

Blake poked her head in, a stunned expression on her face. "How did you…"

Finally, Weiss stepped through the door after Blake, looking around. "I think this is it, Jaune. I've finally lost my mind."

Jaune gave a half-hearted chuckle, though he was too tired to fully appreciate the sheer absurdity of their past day. "I'm going to go try my hand at making some mattresses out of leaves, or something. I… I really don't know how it's going to work out."

And as Jaune left, his three teammates and Cadejo sat down in their stone replica of their dorm their leader had constructed in less than ten minutes using one of the many skills he possessed, given to him by the semblance he had that made him into a video game character.

* * *

The reality of the System had never really sunken in with Jaune, until now.

It was, without a doubt, undeniably absurd.

He'd started work on gathering soft plant matter in order to make something soft to sleep on, but he'd stopped, using _Terrakinesis_ to make a seat for him to sit in and rest.

His mind was a swirling mess. Something was eating away at the forefront of his mind, and he realized it was stress.

' _I don't feel stressed, though. Or do I? I can't even tell.'_

Jaune didn't know what to do. They had a goal, of course, but accomplishing that was becoming more and more difficult. He'd literally lost a leg to a giant Grimm worm less than six hours ago.

That wasn't normal. People didn't survive that sort of thing. If it had been Blake, or Weiss, or Pyrrha, they would've died. Blood-loss, infection, trauma, or simply being feasted upon by Grimm.

It was too much. They'd nearly died. He was used to that, himself, but this time it wasn't just him. This was reality, something his father had been trying to warn him about.

And all this time, Jaune had resented his father for crushing his dreams, even the day before. He felt incredibly guilty about that, now, and that was just adding to the stress.

"What good is all this power if I can't even use it properly!" Jaune shouted, balling his hands into fists tight enough that his nails bit into his palms, blood trailing down before healing instantly.

And Jaune stood up, walked over to the nearest tree, and punched it as hard as he could.

"FUCK!"

The less said about Jaune's mental state, the better.

* * *

 **As a quick note, these chapters have been written in advance, by almost two weeks. Chapter 29 has not been finished yet, though, so it should take into consideration these past few chapters reviews, and speaking of which...**

 **nicklaren: I cannot possibly understand what went through your mind to come up with that absolutely brilliant idea. Seriously, that's nuts. I never would've thought of that. It's genius.**

 **Guest: For elaboration, another guest account said, and I quote, "hahahah weiss said fortnite". If all of you guest accounts had names, or even just mentioned something for me to refer to you as, it would make it a little bit easier to identify who it is I'm speaking to or about. I hope you don't mind the limb-regrowth choice I've made, too.**

 **Torrasque666: That would be way too funny for me, I don't think I could've written that convincingly. It does, however, make me want to rewatch Deadpool again, which isn't a bad thing.**

 **Dragon Bone Z: Thanks, that means a lot. It has taken a lot of effort to make sure it all works, and that I haven't accidentally rushed the system to it's top-tier point yet.**

 **Slenderbrine: God damn, again with the excellent chapter titles! I have stopped, at least for this arc, but they will resume soon enough.**

 **TalonIbnLaAhad: These past few chapters have been 4k words, and considering when I started that was what I said the average chapter length would be, I'm not surprised it seems small in comparison. Free time has been a little sparse these past few days, but don't get me wrong, Chapter 29 will hopefully be longer. I was considering having dismemberment count as a debuff, but considering the way** _System Body_ **works I realized that there wasn't much point. Thanks, though!**

 **Guest: That's actually a really cool idea, almost like making an animated construct, but only a single arm. Kinda reminds me of the idea of using necromancy to revive dead limbs.**

 **jedimasterb10: If you could even survive in The Land Down Under. This sounds like a joke but I literally killed a nest of redbacks this morning. Bug spray, works 80% of the time, every time. Thankfully for Jaune, and my own personal dislike of spiders, Jaune hasn't come across any giant ones yet. And hey, at least he doesn't need those numbers!**

 **Zathol: Holy shit pirate Jaune. You've made me want to write a Pirate AU. Or a Space Pirate AU. And hey, Goodwitch knows about Jaune's semblance. AWBN have a fighting chance yet!**

 **hirshja: Thankfully, as far as they are aware, no one is watching them. As far as they are aware.**

 **stylo1: If you feel like you have better ideas as to how this can be written, let me know. Until then, just telling me that Jaune is braindead, without any kind of reasoning aside from 'Uh, Jaune's played games before, because I have' is kind of pointless. Besides, I'm literally 20 chapters ahead of what you are complaining about. Not much for me to do about that now.**

 **razmire: If only she'd made a pun at ||VOLUME 6 SPOILERS|| Adam's expense. Oh well. ||VOLUME 6 SPOILERS OVER|| There are plenty of creative applications for poison, you aren't wrong, and you've made a hell of a lot of good suggestions, but, and I'll let you in on a little secret, the only elements that were in the poll were the base 6 elements. I have combination elements waiting creation in the spreadsheet, and poison is one of them.**

 **Thank you everyone for your reviews, I appreciate all of you! If you want to check out my twitter it's fat_flying, and if you want to maybe support me my Pa Treon is AFatFlyingWhale.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	29. The Assignment: Part 5

**Apologies for this chapter coming out a little later than intended. Still Friday, though. It's also a little shorter than I expected it to be. Something about this week has made it a little hard to write, and I'm not sure what. Writer's block, I guess.**

* * *

Jaune woke up with a start, bolting upright and disturbing the plant matter beneath him, the mild rustling of his impromptu mattress not enough to wake his team, thankfully.

It had taken Jaune all afternoon to construct those mattresses, but he'd gotten a skill out of it, too. One that he hadn't looked at.

One that he wasn't planning on looking at. Not for a while.

Jaune placed his feet on the hardened stone ground of their stone room he'd created and quietly stepped outside, _Terrakinesis_ thankfully quiet as he opened the stone door.

A walk was what he needed, something to take his mind off the situation at hand, or something to give him focus. Jaune wasn't sure which, but he needed the fresh air.

Shirtless, Jaune grabbed Crocea Mors and his belt, strapping it on and pacing into the surrounding forest. Hell, if he listened closely, over the rustling of trees in the wind and occasional birds chirping quietly, indicating it was past midnight at least, he could hear the ocean washing against the shore. It was faint, but it was there, a reminder of the remains of their previous campsite, and the situation that had befallen them.

As too was the hole, a reminder of the previous day.

Jaune let out a deep, quiet sigh as he paced away from the stone dorm, hand resting comfortably on the hilt of Crocea Mors.

' _I'm not sure what to feel anymore. Stressed, afraid, tired, angry…'_

Jaune settled on confused. ' _How did all of this end up this way?'_

There was no answer to the question, of course, Jaune hadn't been expecting one.

Jaune already knew the answer anyway.

He let out another sigh. "Man, when did my life get so crazy. One minute I was asleep, the next I was stuck with this thing in my head."

"I guess that's just how life works."

Jaune's head snapped around at the sound, before he relaxed. "Hey, Pyrrha. Did I wake you?"

The red-haired girl shook her head, catching up with Jaune as he slowly walked the perimeter. "I was already awake, I heard you leaving."

"Couldn't sleep?"

Pyrrha shook her head again. "Sporadic, mostly. Adrenaline, I guess."

"And a little touch of shock."

"That too, I suppose. You lost a leg."

Jaune let out a little laugh. "I guess I did. Doesn't feel like it now, but without my semblance, I guess it'd be a different story."

The two continued to walk the perimeter, falling into a comfortable silence.

"Jaune, why do you fight?"

The question came out of nowhere, and Jaune couldn't answer, stunned into silence.

"I... "

"Isn't it a simple question?"

At that, Jaune laughed, though it was without humour. "No. It isn't."

"How so?"

"Because I don't know why I fight, anymore. I don't know what to think, to be honest. It's confusing, and daunting. I have so much power at my fingertips, and I can't help but be terrified of what could happen if it wasn't me who had it. What if the people who want it get it? What happens if, despite all that I can do, I fail! What happens, Pyrrha, when I'm not there to help, to fight!"

Jaune was almost shouting now, his face frantic as he spun to face his partner.

"Why do I fight?"

Pyrrha placed a comforting hand on his back. "I can't answer that for you, Jaune. That's your purpose, your fate, your destiny. Yours."

And with that, Pyrrha left him, her comforting words doing nothing to quell the swirling mess that was Jaune's mind, as he slumped to the ground, back rested against a tree.

' _Why do I fight?'_

* * *

Morning broke over the horizon, letting sunlight filter through the tree trunks, cascading over their stone copy of the dorm, waking three of the four members of AWBN, plus Cadejo, who was welcoming his time outside whatever place he stayed when not summoned. Alcmena was also summoned, though she had not been the morning before, slowly preening her metallic feathers in the glinting light, her bronze colourings shimmering and shining as much as Pyrrha's armor ever had, though considering the Stymphalian was native, or as native as Grimm could be, to Mistral, and Pyrrha's armor and headpiece were made of metal harvested from Stymphalian feathers, that was not a surprise.

Of course, as Blake, Weiss and Pyrrha woke, they noticed that the master of Alcmena and Cadejo was mysteriously absent, his makeshift bed left the same as it had been when Pyrrha had awoken previously, earlier that night.

The door was ajar, though considering it was made entirely of stone, that wasn't too much of a surprise, and outside the three could smell the delicious scent of cooking food.

"Morning, all," Jaune greeted, as they exited the fake-dorm, stepping out into the forest to the sight of their leader sitting atop a stone chair of sorts, as he held a long spear of rock.

Pierced by the spear were two skinned rabbits, and the smell was absolutely divine. Even Weiss looked at the cooking wildlife with what looked like a watering mouth.

"Figured I'd experiment with _Terrakinesis_ a little, and got a little carried away. But hey, fresh food is always better than frozen."

The three silently agreed as Jaune motioned for them to take their seats, which were also fashioned out of rock, protruding out of the ground.

"All I've got is food and water in my inventory, all our cutlery and things were left behind, so I made some plates, and some skewers. Sorry I can't do more, stone isn't exactly precise in such a small scale."

They sat, and Jaune handed them their plates and skewers, crude tools made of sharpened rock. "They're clean, don't worry."

Pyrrha was the first to say something. "Are you alright, Jaune?"

Jaune gave her a hesitant smile. "Yeah, I think so. I… had a lot of thinking to do, last night, and what you said helped. Thanks for that, by the way."

"Of course. That's what partners are for," Pyrrha replied, a relieved smile on her face. "Do you have an answer?"

Jaune nodded. "I think so. I want to believe it's why I fight, at least."

Pyrrha gratefully accepted her half of one of the rabbits, passing the other split halves of the other rabbit to Blake and Weiss. "May we hear it?"

Jaune took a moment to compose himself. "I always wanted to be the hero. I've said it time and again. But yesterday, I think we all saw some kind of truth. The Grimm are not an enemy to be hunted and killed. They are a force of nature, like a storm. You can't kill a storm. But you can prepare for it, you can help people prepare for it, and, when the preparation inevitably isn't enough, you can save those affected. A hero isn't the strongest fighter, the one who can kill all the monsters. A hero is the one who, even after everything, can stand up, and sacrifice themselves again and again to help those who can't stand up, until they can't stand up themselves."

Silence befell their camp as Jaune continued. "I want to be a hero, someone who can help people. Protect people. Save people. Not for glory, fame or fortune. I want to fight for others glory, for others fame, others fortune. I was so, incredibly lucky to be gifted with this semblance, and I will stop at nothing to repay Remnant for it."

"I want to help others live the lives they otherwise couldn't. I don't think we can ever truly stop the Grimm. But we can lessen the load on those who can't fight back, make it easier to live, not just survive. I think I finally get what my Dad has being trying to say since the very beginning. A Hunter is a public servant. They aren't soldiers, they aren't warriors, they're protectors of Humanity and Faunus, from all threats, be it Grimm, Faunus, Human, or whatever."

"I don't just want to be a hero. I want AWBN to be heroes, I want to be written into the history books, but not because we were popular, or because we killed so many Grimm, but because we were always willing to do the right thing, no matter the cost. I want us to be the ones who saved lives, not for money or fame, but for the sake of saving lives."

Pyrrha smiled. "Well said, Jaune."

Jaune let out a deep, deep sigh of what appeared to be relief, though it was more like a mix of emotions that no one, not even Jaune, could decipher. "Thanks, Pyr."

"Hey, Jaune?" Blake asked, tentatively. Jaune looked to her, and Blake took it as confirmation to continue. "Thank you for mentioning the Faunus. It might not seem like much, but… it means a lot."

Jaune gave Blake an awkward smile. "Well, yeah."

Weiss was the one to break the atmosphere, as usual. "That was inspired, Jaune, really, and I too appreciate that you told us that, but, and not to detract from what may be the only intelligent moment you've had since you arrived at Beacon, but we have a lot of work ahead of us, especially if we want to beat RRYN back to Beacon."

Jaune stared deadpan at Weiss, who was busy attempting to sever a chunk of rabbit meat from the remains of her rabbit half with the stone skewer.

"Well, aside from walking, I don't really know if there's anything we can do?"

"You don't seem all that sure about that. I had hoped your semblance would give you some kind of mass transport option."

Jaune shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't exactly been presented with a fast travel option, so…"

"Unfortunate, then. Walking it is, I suppose."

"We could always jog. Maybe even run."

Weiss just gave an exasperated sigh.

"Power-walk?"

* * *

Jaune had decided to leave behind their stonework dorm room, a testament to their time in the middle of nowhere, and, after leaving a small signature, 'AWBN was here', the four had departed, Jaune leading with occasional glances at his map to make sure they were on the right bearing.

Granted, most of the map was blank, or at least featureless aside from basic information on what the environment was. Which Jaune could quite easily tell from the surroundings by simply looking.

At least the map was updating itself in more detail the more they traveled.

They'd been walking for nearly the entire day, now, having taken a quick break for lunch around noon.

"Anything interesting on the map, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked, if only to make conversation.

Jaune shook his head as he stepped over a tree root that had breached the dirt, sticking up at an odd angle. "Nothing's updated yet. If there was something interesting, it'd pop up, but I have to get within range first."

"So, more walking?" Blake asked, as she followed Jaune and Pyrrha, stepping over the upturned root.

"Unfortunately," Jaune replied. "Not like we expected anything else, though."

Jaune glanced at his map once again, and again was rewarded with nothing but more forest.

It'd been like that for too long, and it was only the compass on the map that Jaune possessed that was keeping his spirits up. Without it, he had no doubt he would've gotten lost. His experience with cartography notwithstanding, there was also the constant threat of Grimm, which was distracting enough in its own right. The fact that they were also under a time limit?

It might've been enough to make a lesser man give up and fire the flare into the air.

Of course, Jaune wasn't going to do that. What he was going to do, though, was unsheath Crocea Mors and ram it through the skull of the closest Beowolf of the pack that had burst through the underbrush and attacked them.

More Beowolves. They'd been the most common threat that the team had run into so far, having also bumped into and bumped off a small cluster of Ursai, and three packs of Beowolves.

This was the fourth pack, and so far it seemed that they were going to go the way of every other pack, as Jaune spun and, using the momentum of the spin, dragged Crocea Mors out of the head of the first Beowolf and into a swing that beheaded the second.

The thing about the constant fights with the Grimm that Jaune found strange was that so far he hadn't received any experience, nor had he received a notification telling him the encounter was complete.

That worried him, and even as he struck the third Beowolf in the chest with a _Mana Bolt_ , following it up with a stab through the midsection, his mind was focused on the problem at hand.

Which wasn't the Beowolves, of course. They weren't exactly a threat at the moment, and the only one Jaune had to keep an eye out for was the Alpha.

The fourth Beowolf to close in on Jaune soon found itself without a jaw as Crocea Mors flickered through the air with all the force Jaune could muster behind it, and he continued the spin, delivering a follow-up strike that cleaved the jawless Beowolf in half.

This was when the Alpha decided to intervene, claws raking up Jaune's side and knocking him forwards, his Aura sparking in offense as he took the hit, rolling up to his feet and rotating to face the snarling Alpha Beowolf that stood at nearly twice his height, though it was hunched, ready to leap.

It never got the chance, as Cadejo locked his jaws around the back of the Alpha's neck, and bit down hard, and as the Alpha leaned back in pain a torrent of bronze feathers struck it in the chest, courtesy of Alcmena, rivulets of black blood pooling in the dirt.

Cadejo released his bite as Jaune stepped forwards, and as his team finished the rest of the Beowolves, Jaune released a _Lightning Infused Mana Slash_ from Crocea Mors that severed the Alpha's head from its body, the low-volume ding barely registering to Jaune as he hit a critical.

Crocea Mors entered its sheath as Jaune stood back and admired the loot that lay across the ground, from all the Grimm he'd killed. He kind of wished that the Grimm that his team killed would drop loot, but then again, what did he really have to complain about.

Of course, the most interesting part of the loot was the new things he was getting, things he hadn't seen before the most recent System Update, which had, according to the patch notes, adjusted drop tables. It meant that Jaune now had a number of new items in his inventory, things this latest group of Beowolves were only adding to.

In fact, just today, he'd gained eight Beowolf Pelts, twelve Beowolf Claws, two Ursa Pelts, and twenty-five Inert Dust Crystals, which Weiss had explained were simply Dust Crystals that lacked any kind of elemental charge.

That wasn't even including the XP or the Lien that he'd earned, and whilst his XP wasn't going up due to the encounter not ending, for whatever reason, he was still able to pick up the Lien.

Which totaled up to eight-thousand, five-hundred and sixty Lien.

A pretty hefty amount of Lien, to be perfectly honest. Jaune had to admit, he'd forgotten what a benefit his semblance could be.

Once he'd pocketed, or inventoried at the very least, all the drops, he turned to his team. "Let's get going. I don't like it here, something's bothering me."

Jaune wasn't the only one that possessed that sentiment. Blake seemed to share it, constantly looking over her shoulder, glancing about the treeline, but unable to spot anything out of the ordinary.

"You feel it too, Blake?" Jaune asked, as they fell back into their pace, still headed the same direction as before.

Blake shook her head. "I don't know. Something's making my hair stand on end, but I can't place it."

Jaune knew what she meant. "Let's just keep moving. There's nothing we can do about it, so let's just ignore it for now. If it's a threat, it'll reveal itself in time. If it's not, we don't have to worry about it."

Weiss scoffed at his sentiment. "I forgot how simple your outlook on life is, Arc."

Something was definitely wrong, and no matter the confident attitude he presented to his team, it was bothering him.

Something was messing with his System, and that, if nothing else, was the most terrifying thing he'd ever considered. Well, today, at least. Who could know what the future held in store?

* * *

Jaune wished he had of known what the future had held in store.

"That's a really big mountain. I, uh, I wasn't expecting that."

The rest of AWBN seemed as surprised as Jaune. "That can't be what I think it is, can it?" Weiss asked no one in particular.

"What, Weiss?" Jaune asked.

"I think that's Mountain Glenn."

Jaune whipped his head around to look at his white-haired teammate. "Mountain Glenn? Where have I heard that before?"

"Professor Oobleck talked about it a few weeks ago. It was an expansion from Vale, apparently massive in scope."

Jaune looked back to the mountain. "Was?"

"The city lacked the natural defenses of Vale, and was swarmed by Grimm," Weiss explained.

"Ah," Jaune uttered, peering into the distance, only just able to make out walls connected to the massive mountain, far enough away that they were barely visible.

"Walking around this could take some considerable time out of our limit, Jaune," Pyrrha said, hand raised to her face, attempting to block the midday sun from her face as she peered towards the other side of the mountain.

"Yeah, that's what I was thinking. Team meeting?" Jaune asked.

"Was that not what this was already?" Blake commented, an eyebrow quirked.

"I-" Jaune began. "Nevermind. I don't know exactly how long it'll take for us to get around it, but we've already been out for four days. We'd be cutting it close."

"You mean for us to cut through Mountain Glenn?" Weiss exclaimed, turning to look at her leader.

For once, Jaune was completely confident in his idea. "Yes. We can handle whatever Grimm are in there, there shouldn't be that many left. The place has been abandoned for, what, ten, fifteen years?"

"Roughly, but that doesn't mean the Grimm have left. Their numbers still could be immense," Weiss said. "If we go inside and get overwhelmed, it's going to be much harder to get out."

"No risk, no reward," Blake muttered.

"Blake's right. If we want to get back fast, we need to go through Mountain Glenn. It's pretty much a straight shot to Vale."

"That is if we don't get overrun. That would slow us down longer than going around," Weiss pointed out.

Pyrrha shook her head. "Not necessarily. Mountain Glenn is an abandoned city, right? We could always use the buildings to gain height. The only threat then would be flying Grimm, the rest we could outrun."

"Not that we couldn't outrun any flying Grimm, either," Jaune pointed out.

"I won't say I'm one-hundred percent convinced on this plan, Arc, but I will agree with all of you, on one condition," Weiss said.

Jaune's questioning look met Weiss's face.

"If things get to be too much, pride or not, competition or not, we fire off the emergency flare. We can't regenerate limbs."

Jaune nodded. "Of course. I don't care that much about this race anyway, if we lose, so be it."

Weiss was already walking towards the mountain. "Well, let's not waste any time then. First things first, our oh so glorious leader, how do we get inside?"

Jaune raised his hand to the back of his head before noticing where it was headed and stopping it. "Well, I'd assume a ruined city would have a lot of holes in their walls. Question is, which direction do we pick?"

"Flip a Lien?" Blake offered.

Jaune shrugged, and withdrew a Lien. "Worth is left, strip is right. Sound good?"

There were no objections, and Jaune flipped it, catching it out of the air and placing it atop his wrist, other hand covering it.

Slowly, purely for the dramatic effect and because it seemed to be annoying Weiss, he withdrew his hand.

"Left it is, I guess."

And so AWBN began their walk, keeping a wary eye on their surroundings as they approached the massive wall that was built into the side of the mountain.

It took them nearly an hour to make it, and less than ten minutes to find a crack wide enough to squeeze through. It was also, coincidentally, wide enough for five Bullheads to fly through abreast, but that was less of an important point that Jaune noticed.

What was an important point was that there were not only cracks in the pavement, asphalt and concrete that made up Mountain Glenn's terrain, but chunks of ruined building, shattered glass fragments and what looked to be decades old corpses, more skeletons than anything else, littering the ground in a macabre display of abandonment and sacrifice.

It was honestly one of the most depressing things Jaune had ever witnessed.

The moment Jaune dropped from the crack in the wall and landed both feet into the perimeter, something happened.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 615,810 XP!]**

 **[You've reached Level 28! +15 Stat Points!]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

Jaune let out a sigh of relief as he read that, and felt proud that he'd reached level twenty-eight. That was a three level increase for what was roughly four days worth of semi-consistent combat.

Of course, the next string of notifications was a little more terrifying.

 **[You have entered a Raid Zone!]**

 **[While in a Raid Zone, all enemies killed have a chance to drop Raid Loot. Raid Loot is more valuable than regular loot. However, all enemies inside Raid Zones are tougher, stronger and smarter. Higher risk, higher reward.]**

"Uh… hate to be the bearer of bad news…" Jaune began, before he read out the new notification.

"Great. That's just what we need," Weiss muttered.

"Well, it could be good. At the very least it doesn't really change our plan," Jaune pointed out.

"Talk later. We need to find somewhere to camp for the night, and I'd rather not be doing that when the sun is setting," Blake said, urgency tinging her voice.

"Blake's right. Let's get moving. We're already here, this doesn't change anything."

And, as the mid-afternoon sun beamed across the abandoned streets of Mountain Glenn, illuminating the apocalyptic levels of death and destruction that had occurred more than a decade ago, AWBN began their trek deeper and deeper into the winding maze that was the suburban nightmare, full of deadly monsters.

Once again, Jaune was nervous. A common theme.

* * *

 **Well, that wasn't my greatest chapter. At least I managed to work on some behind-the-scenes things, including new drop tables, which I'm really proud of the way that I programmed them. And hey, at least next week is going to have some exploration into things that Jaune hasn't seen before, but I've been wanting to implement since the very beginning. At least, I hope I can implement them. It depends on my luck with the drop tables. Which are actually randomized. Fun fact, that's gonna be a little weird to write with, but it should be an interesting challenge.**

 **Now, that's all out of the way, let's move onto reviews!**

 **drannakka: If I was to develop that idea further, it would be it's own story. It is a really damn cool idea, but it isn't really conducive towards any story threads at the moment, and I can't really just add new ones. It's already complicated enough to manage. Though technomancy would be a hella cool semblance.**

 **Dragon Bone Z: How strong is Jaune? Well, if I were to go to the Damage Calculator that I wrote, and check what his current skills could do, then his highest magic skill damage wise would be a Lightning Infused Mana Pulse at full charge, dealing 5995 damage, and his most powerful physical skill is currently his One-Handed Melee, dealing 372 damage in one slash, with his current STR mod. As for why Terrakinesis over Geokinesis, I think it's just personal preference. I've always referred to the Latin term Terra, so it comes naturally. Geo always struck me as more specifically stone. And just send me a PM with the link, I'll check it out!**

 **Adro-Sama: I only just recently started playing Darkest Dungeon, and man am I bad at managing stress in that game. I've lost like eight people just to heart attacks already.**

 **Slenderbrine: Always with the better chapter titles, I swear.**

 **TalonIbnLaAhad: Suicide Grimm are now on my to-do list. I'm a little iffy on the discussion of Jaune's mortality in this chapter, there may be a chance I go back and change it at a later date because when I write important dialogue with a massive amount of writer's block going on, it usually ends up trash. But hey, I'm glad you're liking it! Ain't nothing wrong with wanting more!**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: And thus the Wizard returns, with incredible ideas and implementation of skills that I would never be able to come up with! All hail! Seriously though, cheers. You may be one of the reasons the skill list never stops expanding.**

 **Guest: Implying they had that much rope.**

 **lordrednight: I get that, I know all about life getting in the way. Glad you enjoyed, and I'm looking forward to writing it as much as you are reading it, possibly more!**

 **LordEngineer: Thanks, I appreciate that. I've always been a little iffy on the way I've implemented combat, and having seen a lot of examples of both good and bad implementation in Gamer fics, I like to think that this way works quite well from a reading standpoint.**

 **razmire: I can absolutely guarantee that Poison will end up in The System at some point, most probably in one of the forms you suggested.**

 **Kane: That's actually really interesting. I've never really looked into the details concerning that, and that seems like another thing I may end up looking into, or at least browsing wikipedia about. I do that a lot.**

 **Chris Jacksion: That's kind of been the point, these early chapters. And yes, I consider nearly thirty chapters the early chapters. He hasn't been thinking smart, and it has been costing him. He's only just starting to grasp the smart way to progress, becoming more and more confident in his abilities, and beginning to consider the ways he can implement them.**

 **That about does it for reviews for this week, thank you all for reviewing, fav-ing and following, I appreciate you all, and if you want to talk with me, feel free to either send me a PM or hit me up on twitter, fat_flying, or if you feel like supporting my writing, I'm on Pat Reon under AFatFlyingWhale.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	30. The Assignment: Part 6

**Apologies for the chapter being a day late, I haven't had any time to sit down these past few days. Eight-hundred technical issues sprung up with three different computers that had me buying a new PSU, reformatting and reinstalling my OS and a bunch of other issues. Enjoy the chapter though, don't let my misery get you down.**

* * *

Blake pushed aside the draped, dirty, dust-covered tarpaulin that covered the small crack in the building and slipped inside, dragging it back into place behind her as she quietly stepped throughout the ruined building's basement, gently climbing over the hastily-constructed barricade in the large doorway.

"I'm back. Nothing nearby, aside from a couple Beowolf packs, but they aren't headed our way."

The rest of her team looked to her, their somewhat makeshift chairs which, courtesy of Jaune's _Terrakinesis, were_ only partially uncomfortable, and Cadejo plodded up, running his head under her hand.

Blake relented, reluctantly giving the wolf a head-rub as she took the free seat.

Jaune adjusted the _Candlelight_ in the room as he swivelled in his chair, resting his arms against his legs.

"That's nice to hear. I"ll take first watch anyway, you guys get some sleep. Or try to, anyway."

Weiss and Pyrrha both looked more than happy to oblige, grabbing the ratty old blankets they'd found and attempted to clean and taking up spots on the ground that Jaune had cleared.

Blake, however, did not join her companions, choosing instead to sit up and, for once, enjoy Cadejo's company, lost in thought.

Jaune couldn't help but smile at the sight of the cat Faunus somewhat at ease with the large wolf, but his smile dropped when he saw the expression Blake was wearing.

He knew pressing for information wouldn't bear fruit, but waiting for the girl to formulate her thoughts would, and he was willing to wait. He had a watch to perform anyway.

Jaune stood from his seat, dimming the _Candlelight_ and stepping away, running his hand down the back of Cadejo as the wolf sat down, and Jaune willed the wolf to stay with Blake, as he climbed up onto the raised dais that sat behind their barricade, taking a seat in another stone seat he'd created earlier.

Time, as it tended to, ticked on by, and as Jaune stared into the gloom on the other side of the barricade, he occasionally glanced towards the still awake ex-White Fang member, still lost in thought.

Jaune didn't know how long it had taken until she'd culminated her thoughts into a cohesive string, but as she clambered up onto the dais and took the other raised block that was the seat, Jaune turned his attention to her.

"The White Fang are in Mountain Glenn."

It was safe to say that Blake had Jaune's full attention.

"What makes you say that?" He asked, leaning forward slightly.

"Torchwick said their operation was in the south-east, right?" Blake began, and Jaune nodded. "If they wanted to maintain their ongoing operations inside Vale, they couldn't be too far from the city."

Jaune nodded again.

"But if they wanted to stay hidden without having to fight a consistent amount of Grimm like what we've been facing, they'd have to be somewhere that isn't easy to find."

"In Mountain Glenn somewhere... " Jaune breathed out, eyes widening. "It makes sense. Question is, where?"

"I'm not sure, but we can't let this opportunity go to waste. We need to find them. We have to."

Jaune held up his hands placatingly as Blake practically raised from her seat with her last words. "Okay, okay. I know. Just… we can't just search the entirety of Mountain Glenn."

Blake's eyes narrowed. "Is this about that stupid race?!"

"Easy, Blake. No, I know how important this is. It's about supplies. We only brought enough for the two weeks, Blake. If we were to search Mountain Glenn top to bottom, we'd run out of food and water before we got anywhere close to being finished," Jaune said. "We can still search, don't get me wrong, but we need to be smart about it, narrow it down somehow. If we can figure out where they aren't, then we can figure out where they are, you know?"

Blake slumped back, turning to stare into the darkness beyond their barricade. "They won't be out in the open. It's too risky, they wouldn't risk being spotted. So that rules out a camp, or the top of a building."

"So, somewhere not out in the open, easily secured, and, what, hidden enough that they can get supplies to it without the Atlesians or Vale noticing?" Jaune thought aloud, and Blake nodded in agreement. "Can't be that many places in Mountain Glenn that fit that mould. If only that didn't rule out Alcmena for searching."

"I... " Blake began to speak, but trailed off. "I know it's a lot to ask. If we don't have enough supplies, or time, then we should pull back, but still…"

"It's bugging you," Jaune finished. "You blame yourself."

"I could've stopped him," Blake stated, before clarifying. "Adam. I should've seen it sooner, should've noticed that he was turning darker, angrier, but I was blind. I thought we were doing good."

Jaune placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "That's in the past, Blake. You left, and now all you do is try to stop them from doing worse. No one would blame you, not even Weiss."

The black-haired girl gave a small smile, and Jaune helped her up. "Get some sleep. I'm on watch for a few hours before I wake Pyrrha, so you won't need to wake until morning."

Blake hadn't realised how tired she was until that moment, and she was almost already asleep by the time she'd laid down on the somewhat-clean blanket on the ground.

As for Jaune?

He had a little bit more on his mind now.

* * *

Morning had broken, but it was only evident from the clocks on their scrolls, or in Jaune's case, his HUD clock, ticking away in his periphery.

Pyrrha had woken him only moments before, along with Weiss and Blake, and thankfully the redhead had nothing to report. The night had been empty and almost silent, Jaune hadn't seen anything either, and that, in Jaune's opinion, did not bode well for the future.

Supposedly this was a raid zone, and considering they were yet to run into any Grimm they had to fight, Jaune was anxious, though whether he'd rather fight tougher Grimm or not find any was a toss-up, a coin flip between a rock and a hard place. So to speak, at least. His option of where to sleep really had been between a rock and a hard place, though, so it was at least a saying Jaune was somewhat familiar with.

Weiss would take two blankets, it was just like her.

Not that Jaune would have disturbed her, or mention it to her now. That was a recipe for disaster if ever he'd heard one, and he'd watched Weiss attempt to bake a cake only a month ago.

Of course, Jaune had been the last to wake, which wasn't a surprise. He'd had less sleep than any of the others, partly because of a minor amount of guilt that had him stay up an extra hour before waking Pyrrha, but mostly because when he actually did go to his 'bed', and he used the word very loosely, he'd been lying awake, mind racing.

Blake had dropped a bombshell, something significantly serious that had rearranged his entire set of priorities. No more race, that was unimportant. What was important was finding the White Fang before they ran out of supplies. That was first on his list.

Second on his list was explaining to Blake that even if they did find the White Fang, they weren't going to attack. This wasn't going to be like the docks, Blake was going to follow his orders, he'd be damned if he didn't make sure of that, but first he needed to work up the nerve to say that.

None of that mattered if they didn't find the White Fang, though. So, today would be dedicated to priority number one.

Breakfast was a fast affair of cold rations. After Blake had informed Weiss and Pyrrha of her suspicions, Jaune had set about preparing their meal. Which, after an impromptu discussion about the validity of stealth, they decided against lighting a fire, especially indoors, surrounded by somewhat-unstable building.

Cold rations, Jaune decided, were not good for morale. In fact, they were the exact opposite of good for morale. They were, unequivocally, bad for morale.

Lurking Grimm that made their presence known the moment they stepped out of their previous night's safe haven?

Even worse for morale.

A Beowolf claw raked down the side of his shield as it pressed all its weight against him, the onslaught almost too much for Jaune to be able to take standing, and it kept slashing away, the only thing keeping Jaune from being turned into Jaune-colored ribbons being his shield, though his arm was beginning to buckle under the pressure.

This was one Beowolf out of the six in the pack. All Alphas, aside from the sixth, who stood watching with a snarl, the Elder Beowolf keeping a wary eye on all four of them, waiting for one of its pack to require assistance.

"Stupid! Mutt!" Jaune shouted, breaking their stealth rule almost immediately, as he shoved with all his might, forcing the Alpha Beowolf back slightly, the beast having to switch its footing, stepping one leg back to brace.

Jaune refused to let that be the end of it, and quickly gave ground, stepping back and smashing his shield forward one moment later. The _Shield Bash_ was limited, as low a level as it was, and whilst the Alpha Beowolf seemed to take it in stride, only pausing for a split-second, it was all he needed.

Dropping Crocea Mors to the ground, Jaune outstretched his hand and unleashed a _Mana Blast_ , and whilst it barely damaged the Alpha, it did force it back further, which was partially beneficial as it gave Jaune some time to recover, and by some time it was more accurately half a second, it was also detrimental in that it grabbed the Elder's attention.

He barely had enough time to cast _Mana Field_ to redirect the Alpha's wild slash, forcing it to the side, but the glowing semi-sphere of Mana did nothing to faze the Elder as its sharp claws broke straight through the field without so much as a pause, nearly cutting Jaune in half as it did so, Aura or no.

His stumble backwards did two things. Firstly, it brought him out of reach of his weapon, Crocea Mors laying on the dusty ground without so much as a care for the weapon's wellbeing. Secondly, it put Jaune's back up against a wall.

The second thing was significantly worse for the teen than the first, though neither were very good in the general scheme of things.

The Alpha had backed off, standing watch like a guard dog, sniffing the air, as the Elder stepped right up to Jaune, snarling viciously in his face.

Jaune felt as if 'not going down without a fight' was almost like his own personal saying at this point, and he quickly embodied it, placing his hand on the wall behind him and activating a quick burst of _Terrakinesis_ , a spike of stone ejecting from the wall and piercing the Elder's shoulder.

The Elder Beowolf seemed to be uncaring about the injury, simply flicking it aside, claws breaking the stone as if it were sand underfoot, still snarling, jaws inching ever closer.

Jaune punched it in the mouth with a _Mana Punch_.

The Elder Beowolf looked almost offended, if it was possible for such a thing, before it was quickly under assail from a pack of Cadejo look-alikes, led by Cadejo himself, Alcmena flying high behind him.

The Elder writhed and threw itself around, flinging three of the seven Cadejo-clones off it's back, but Cadejo rectified that, locking around the Elder's throat and clamping down, fangs digging into the black flesh.

Jaune wasn't going to let Cadejo have all the fun, but first he had to deal with the Alpha, which had stepped back in, having noticed the Elder in distress.

A _Dodge_ had Jaune roll out of the way of the Alpha's snapping jaws, and, as luck would have it, Jaune managed to actually pick up Crocea Mors as he rolled, coming up and instantly slashing at the Alpha.

It shouldn't have instantly decapitated the Alpha. According to the math, which Jaune was able to run whilst fighting, that was nowhere near enough damage to kill it, and yet the dinging noise indicating Jaune had struck a critical was like music to his ears.

Jaune was already moving however, not even bothering to watch the Alpha squirm in its death-throes on the ground as he pushed closer to the Elder, driving Crocea Mors point first into the stomach-area of the massive Beowolf.

Jaune didn't know if Beowolves possessed internal organs of such refinement, but it bled black blood all the same, and howled in his face, the clamped jaws of Cadejo on its neck not doing enough to squeeze all the air out of what Jaune assumed were lungs.

Did Grimm need to breathe?

It was an interesting question that could wait until quite literally any other time, and Jaune decided he would do just that, pushing it out of his mind and threw his hand up, delivering a powerful _Mana Punch_ in the form of an uppercut, knocking the Elder up and back, its legs scrabbling for footing as the weight of Cadejo and his pack pulled it backwards, the Grimm off-balance.

Jaune re-grasped Crocea Mors, which he'd released to deliver the uppercut, and as the Elder fell backwards, the monster's weight dragged the sword from the wound, spitting black blood and gore onto the ground as it writhed and spasmed, covered in bite marks.

A torrent of bronze feathers stuck into its exposed chest as Alcmena voiced her opinion of the monster with a loud cry, swooping over and grasping the ball of Mana that Jaune held aloft.

She soared around and dive-bombed the Elder Beowolf as Cadejo and his pack were de-summoned, and she opened her talon.

The Mana Grenade, timed perfectly, hit the Elder in the head and exploded, leaving a smoking crater where it's skull had been, along with the scent of charred Grimm flesh, which Jaune hated that he was familiar with.

Already he was turning to help his team, a chorus of Mana projectiles courtesy of _Spinning Mana Bullet_ impacting the floundering, weakened Alphas that his team had managed to wound, though Pyrrha had managed to kill her target without significant trouble.

Jaune hit the ground hard, panting where he sat, as Weiss and Blake flopped against the nearest wall, and even Pyrrha was down on one knee, balancing with the haft of her javelin.

"That… that wasn't a lot of fun," Jaune heaved out through heavy breaths.

No one replied, content with just refilling their blood with oxygen.

"At least there's good loot?" Jaune said again, though once again there was no reply, and Jaune turned to look at what had dropped.

Five Inert Dust Crystals, two Beowolf Pelts, one Alpha Beowolf Claw, four Alpha Beowolf Spines, and three Elder Beowolf Claws sat in a small pile next to him, along with 4200 Lien, according to his semblance.

And, one other thing, something Jaune had never seen before.

"That can't be what I think it is, can it?"

Sitting on the ground was a small pyramid-like glass bottle, filled with green liquid, a small cork stopper sitting in the top.

"Huh. That's a potion."

That attracted his team's attention, even Cadejo, resummoned as he was, who plodded over and gave the bottle a tentative sniff.

Jaune reached down and picked up the bottle, and quickly used _Observe_.

 **[Regular Potion of Stamina]**

 **[A small bottle containing a greenish potion that tastes somewhat like lime, the Stamina Potion restores an amount of SP when consumed.]**

 **[Restores 15% of total SP when consumed.]**

Jaune marvelled at the potion in his hand. "This is insane. This is an actual potion."

Weiss stepped up next to Jaune and peered at the liquid. "It smells… appetizing? What does it do?"

"It's a stamina potion. It's like a first-of-a-kind energy drink that hits a lot harder."

Weiss frowned. "As interesting as it sounds, is that actually useful?"

Jaune shrugged. "On its own? Probably not. But this means there are other potions, like Mana, or Health."

That seemed to perk the white-haired girl up somewhat. "A potion that can heal injuries? That sounds, well, magical."

Blake stepped over and gave it a tentative sniff in a way that made Jaune laugh. The black-haired girl looked at him, almost offended, until she realised that what she had just done was almost identical to what the wolf had done. Speaking of, Cadejo's tail was wagging hard, and Weiss felt herself unable to resist giving him a rub, running her hand through the fur on his head.

"So, potions, huh?" Blake began, once she'd hit Jaune over the head. "How do you get them, just as drops?"

Once again, Jaune shrugged. "So far? I'm not going to use this, I might be able to take it to Professor Peach and have her look into it, so we'll have to see. Who knows, I might be able to retire from Beacon and start a medical company that rivals the SDC. Put Weiss out of business."

Weiss's shock was palpable as her head whipped around at what could've been terminal velocity.

Jaune chuckled as he dropped the Stamina Potion into his inventory. "Relax, Weiss. I'll just buy the SDC out with all the money the Grimm are dropping."

Weiss almost looked like she was fuming, until something caught her attention. "Jaune, you might crash the global economy."

That sentence hit Jaune almost like it was whiplash. "What?"

"Where is this Lien coming from? Is it disappearing from some bank vault, or is it just materializing," Weiss explained. "If it's the latter, there's a chance that if you amass enough, the overabundance of Lien will devalue the entire currency, rendering it useless."

This was a conversation that was over Jaune's head. "How much Lien would that take?"

Weiss thought about it for a moment as they began to move, Pyrrha taking point. "I don't know. A couple billion, maybe?"

Jaune relaxed. "Oh, good. I thought you meant like a hundred-thousand or something, I was really worried there for a second."

"Don't get me wrong, it will still devalue the currency, no matter how much you have, but it's how much you spend and how long it takes to notice before it becomes a problem. If the Valean Tax Department can't figure out where you're getting the money from that could also be a problem."

Still going over Jaune's head, he retorted with the only thing he could think of. "Couldn't I just use you as a shell company?"

Weiss looked offended. "The SDC is not a shell company!"

Blake took this as her moment to jump in. "Weiss is right, Jaune. Use one of the SDC's shell companies. That's an obvious one."

Jaune nodded sagely. "Well, I guess you have to make a profit somehow."

"Blake, I don't need the reminder. Jaune, you… you are just an idiot."

Jaune nodded sagely once more. "When it comes to finance I think Ruby has the upper hand on me. And Yang. And Nora. Probably my sisters, too, come to think of it."

"Do you not pay attention in Professor Aurum's class?" Weiss asked, shocked.

"Who?"

"Ugh!" Weiss exclaimed, throwing her hands up. "Why do I even bother?!"

Blake let out her trademark gentle chuckle. "I don't know who Professor Aurum is either."

Pyrrha joined in. "Neither do I, I'm afraid."

Jaune put a pondering finger to his chin. "Weiss, did you make up Professor Aurum?"

Weiss couldn't choose between mortification, shock or anger. "What? Make up the financing professor? How could I- Why would-!"

"Is it an optional lecture or something?" Pyrrha wondered aloud, and Weiss jumped on that.

"It isn't an optional lecture, but it is a lecture! It's by Professor Aurum, the transfer professor from Haven!"

Jaune clicked his fingers in recognition. "The one who's really, really hot?"

"Yes!" Weiss exclaimed, before blushing heavily. "Not in as many words, of course."

"I thought she was a student. She's always got those two following her, what were their names?" Blake mused.

"Emerald and Mercury. They're a… little strange, but for us, they're far more normal than we could hope to be," Weiss explained, a little glumly.

"Given up already?" Blake asked, a teasing smirk on her face.

"How could I not have? Look at him!"

Jaune looked up, eyes crossing as they stared at the point of Weiss's once well-manicured fingernail, inches from his face. "Easy there Weiss. I like my eyes."

Weiss huffed. "Not like you couldn't just heal them anyway."

Jaune shrugged. "I don't think either of us want to know what it feels like to pop an eyeball with a finger."

Weiss turned a light shade of green and didn't answer.

Pyrrha interrupted their squabble, grabbing their attention with a hand-motion, something drilled into them by Goodwitch over a number of weeks, the first lesson having confused many a student.

The three dropped low and quickly caught up with their point-woman, peeking over the rubble.

On the other side, about one-hundred fifty meters away, was a giant elephant-like Grimm.

"Goliath. Not something we can hope to face."

Pyrrha's matter-of-fact delivery brooked no argument from any of AWBN.

"Go around it?" Blake asked, glancing to the side.

The Goliath looked directly at them, red eyes staring.

"Go very far away from it very fast?" Jaune offered.

The Goliath stepped forwards, thick round foot planting itself tentatively against the ground, before placing it's full weight upon it.

Whilst Blake and Pyrrha spent time looking for a route that would take them past the giant elephant Grimm, and Weiss checked her Dust reserves, Jaune stared at the behemoth of a creature, watching it carefully.

There was no way it didn't know they were there, even if the only evidence he had to support that theory was a bad feeling, but _Danger Sense_ hadn't triggered, so it wasn't even a reliable feeling.

This was instinct, something deep within him telling him something indecipherable.

The most common advice older Hunter's gave was 'trust your instincts', or some variation on the saying, but Jaune knew if he did as his instincts suggested, he'd get them all killed.

' _Attack it!'_ His instincts screamed at him, as he watched the beast take another tentative step.

Well, it wasn't as if Jaune had a reason not to trust his instincts, so he did, leaping out of cover to the startled sounds of his three teammates, who most likely thought their leader to have been overcome with a bout of insanity.

Jaune was not insane, or at least not currently insane, however, as it was not just his instincts he was relying on. No, Jaune had a plan.

Jaune hit the ground in a roll, at the base of the Goliath's feet, and, despite the shouted warnings from his team, slammed his palm into the ground.

Two things happened in succession. First, the Goliath reared back on two legs, intent on slamming them down on Jaune. Secondly, Jaune cast _Mana Quake_ , pushing Mana into the ground, causing it to shake, vibrate and crack, shards of earth and stone splintering and scattering dust into the air.

The Goliath realized it's mistake as it reached the apex of its stomp, losing balance as the ground shook underneath it and falling backwards, landing hard.

Then, the ground shook again as it hit, more dust being spat into the air, and Blake, Pyrrha and Weiss watched as Jaune and the Goliath fell through the ground.

"Jaune!" His three teammates exclaimed in shock and fear, and as the hole widened, and the remains of a building easily thirty stories fell in as well, raining debris into the pit.

The noise was cacophonous, the damage devastating, and there was absolutely no way that Jaune could have survived if it weren't for his regenerative capabilities.

Jaune had dropped a building on a Goliath, and assumedly lived.

They received confirmation of their leader's survival when his arm poked out of a pile of powdered building and road, much darker than he had been when he entered, as coated in dirt as he was.

Coughing was the only noise the teen made in reply to his team's requesting of his health, his lungs full of dust and dirt, but he gave a shaky, filthy thumbs-up in their general direction.

Something else stirred underneath the rubble.

Jaune was already on his way out of the hole, scrabbling up the side before shaking his head and activating _Surface Walk_ , running up the side and clambering out, stumbling slightly over the uneven terrain as he joined back up with his team.

"Got rid of the Goliath," He panted out, one hand on his knee as his other brushed dirt off the back of his neck.

Muffled roars sounded out from beneath the rubble, almost as if to prove him wrong.

"Got rid of most of the Goliath," Jaune corrected himself, looking back into the giant hole. A trunk poked out of a pile of rubble like a snorkel, and it would've been comical if it didn't bring the mention of the creature it was attached to.

Jaune fired a _Spinning Mana Bullet_ at it for good measure, the projectiles thudding into the trunk and the ground around it, the ones that missed dispersing with crackling pops.

Jaune shrugged. "That should keep it busy, at least."

The Goliath trumpeted, pushing more and more rubble out of the way, and Jaune quickly observed it, interested in how much HP it had left, and, conversely, how much damage he'd done so far.

Jaune paled. Sure, his instincts had been right, he'd done a pretty hefty amount of damage, but…

 **[Alpha Goliath]**

 **[Level 40]**

 **[Grimm, Rare]**

 **[HP: 12,000/36,000]**

That was one tough Grimm.

Another problem was that Jaune had reduced his Aura down to less than a quarter, and whilst the Goliath had taken the brunt of what could only be described as concussive force, Jaune had still taken a pretty hefty series of hits, even using _Terrakinesis_ to dampen the raining debris.

The Goliath was halfway out of the rubble now, covered in cuts that bled black blood onto the ground, quite obviously angry.

"Okay, made a mistake, give me a minute to fix it?" Jaune offered in a placating manner, already regretting whatever bloodlust had overcome him.

Jaune stepped up onto a destroyed car wreck, ignoring the flakes of rust it sent into the air, and brought his hands together, channelling Mana.

The Goliath was almost free of the ruined street, and Jaune focused, forming a new shape.

' _Longer, sharper, bigger,'_ Jaune thought, stretching the Mana until his team could only see a line of it, widening slowly.

Pyrrha gasped as she watched Jaune launch his newest projectile, and as _Mana Lance_ soared through the sky and pierced the Goliath's head, trailing crackling lightning, the sound emitted was almost enough to shatter windows, were there any left unbroken from the years of neglect and abandonment.

The _Mana Lance_ , unlike most of Jaune's Mana-based projectiles, remained inside the Goliath's head, causing the Grimm to trumpet in agony, writing and stamping as it tried to dislodge what could only be described as white-hot plasma.

The super-charged _Mana Pulse_ that hit the Goliath impacted right against the _Mana Lance_ , and something happened that not even Jaune had been expecting.

A surge, a burst of power that radiated out from the impact point and sent Jaune and his team stumbling back from the sheer air-pressure, effectively nullifying the Goliath.

It also gave Jaune a small notification.

 **[You have created a Mana Surge!]**

 **[Mana Surges dramatically increase the amount of damage your spells can deal, at the cost of nullifying your MP regeneration for a certain amount of time. Mana Surges happen through a variety of circumstances, at random!]**

 **[Mana Surge Debuff: MP regen disabled for 2 hours!]**

"Oh, that's not good."

* * *

 **And that does it for this week's chapter. Man, we're getting into some meat, right here. Mana Surges, Raid Loot, Potions?! So many new things, drawn from the depths of the spreadsheet. Some of this stuff was prepared months ago, it's an absolute blast to pull out and show off. Now, onto reviews!**

 **Fireshared: Your change of attitude gave me whiplash, glad you like it! And shh, keep it on the down-low, but we might be getting a new summon soon! Considering how much time I've put into making sure everything is balanced, I'm happy to see that you agree that it is in fact balanced.**

 **lordrednight: Well, I'm glad you liked it at least. I'm still pretty much sure the last chapter was my worst one, but sometimes the only way to break the Writer's Block is to force your way through like a bull in a china shop.**

 **BlazinHothead: That's the way life works sometimes. Things just get worse and worse, but hey, once you hit rock bottom the only way is up. Granted, they haven't hit rock bottom yet.**

 **Helixical: Sometimes, you've gotta do the wrong thing. It was a terrible idea for keeping it a secret though. We've seen Jaune in canon be really bad at that anyway. Maybe if he spends some Stat Points on Charisma.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: The repertoire grows evermore. Considering I already have a Life Move-esq skill in the list, and a Grudge-esq skill in the list, I won't be adding them, but Blood Edge is a great idea. Haemomancy, man, that's shit is always cool. As for Phlegm, love everything, yet the name sends shivers down my spine for some reason. I'll workshop it?**

 **Adro-Sama: Shh... New pet may be incoming.**

 **Slenderbrine: You are right, and I agree with everything you say. Quite literally the day after I uploaded I re-read it, and pretty much hate it now. Worst chapter of Systema without a doubt, in my opinion, which is a little strange to say.**

 **TooLazyToLogin: I'm glad you like it, and I love the ideas, Mage Armor is officially added in the form of Mana Plate, Cover and Disguise already exist in one form or another, and the Summon Skill will have a few more uses eventually. Once Jaune is a little safer, I reckon.**

 **razmire: Well, you were right, :P**

 **dirtrevor: No, there isn't. At least, there isn't in the traditional sense, and most likely never will be. However, there are a few perks I'm workshopping to give some semblance of teamwork. Nothing OP, though. Gotta keep that balance.**

 **Ultimate Storm: Granted, we've never seen any canon showing that Blake was significant in combat with the White Fang, only that she was involved in protests a lot, and a few other things. And, regardless, the level variance is pretty reasonable. Most people aren't Level 50-something by age 30. And Level 1 Robots have the same stats as an average Hunter-In-Training or Signal Graduate. Fit, capable, and able to work cohesively in a unit with far more cooperation than a group of regular fighters.**

 **jedimasterb10: Ah, the good old 'I'm terrified and excited,' that's come up a few times now. I may need to borrow some fans.**

 **Imsorryiwasaguest: That is by far one of my favourite names so far. Also, quite literally making a blade out of poison is certainly an odd way of going about it, but by gods does that have a number of uses. Kind of reminds me of the one-shot I did a while back. Glad you like it, and yeah, I read every single review, without fail. Actually, I probably read them more than once.**

 **And that does it for this week+1 day, I guess, so I'll wrap up with the little bit of info in that I have a Pa Treon and a Twitter, AFatFlyingWhale and fat_flying respectively, come check them out if you want to support me, or just talk! Also, feel free to PM. I'm pretty much always online.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	31. The Assignment: Part 7

**On time for once! Enjoy!**

* * *

Jaune was out of Mana for the next two hours.

Panic began to filter in, flooding his mind like a bathtub full of fear and a broken faucet, until _System Mind_ cleared it, though it did not restore his Mana.

Jaune decided to deal with the aftermath of the Mana Surge once he'd gathered up the loot the Alpha Goliath had dropped, and so he dropped into the crater, scrounging around for what it had dropped.

His team followed him, and it looked as if they couldn't decide between them as to whose job it would be to be angry at Jaune.

He knew he deserved it. Something had come over him, and he'd attacked the giant elephant Grimm with only minor hesitation, and now it was going to cost him.

Jaune pushed aside a piece of rubble and stared at the reward he'd received his risk-taking.

8000 Lien, a neat little pile somehow devoid of dust or grime, and a book. A skill book, without a doubt.

Jaune picked it up and quickly dropped it into his inventory, along with the Lien, and rose back to his feet.

"Jaune, how could you-!" Weiss began, but Jaune held up a hand to silence her.

"Not now, Weiss. We've drawn a lot of attention, which is my fault, but the Goliath had seen us. We need to move."

Weiss looked as if she wanted to argue the point further, but a chorus of howls and roars that grew closer and closer with each moment dissuaded her of that idea.

Blake stepped up to Jaune, placing a hand on his shoulder. "Jaune, the tunnels. They could be using an old subway station."

Jaune nodded. "It'd make sense, and they could be using the tunnel itself to camp in. It'd be pretty safe, too, there are really only two ways to keep an eye out."

Pyrrha knelt next to the remains of a tunnel. "Jaune, over here. Can you clear it out?"

Now was the time to come clean. "No."

"No?" Weiss exclaimed, a swirling mix of emotions. "What do you mean no?"

"That blast, that wasn't a skill. Or it was, but I can't really do it at will," Jaune explained. "It did a hell of a lot of damage, sure, but I can't use my Mana for two hours."

"That isn't a good thing, Jaune," Pyrrha pointed out.

Jaune shrugged. "I can still fight. I've still got Crocea Mors, physical skills, and both Cadejo and Alcmena. I just can't use skills that cost Mana, is all."

Blake turned. "So, how do we get inside the underground? Any plans?"

Another shrug from Jaune as he replied. "Find an entrance? How would you normally get underground?"

Blake opened her mouth, before promptly shutting it.

Blake had already broken off, searching the street for a way down.

"Over here!" Blake called out, waving them down. The rest of them quickly closed the distance, peering into the stairwell that was covered in shattered glass and what looked like dried blood.

"That's depressing. They must have sealed the doors behind them when Glenn fell."

Jaune felt for these people, he really did, but they were dead. He stepped down the stairs and began to heave the skeletons out of the way.

' _It's not that I have no respect for the dead, it's that I have a job to do. Sorry, Mr and Mrs Skeleton'_ , Jaune thought, as he shoved the bones aside, the noise a depressing clattering on the ground.

"The doors are most likely sealed shut, Jaune. I don't know what it is you think you can do, considering you don't have any of your spells at the moment," Weiss pointed out, and Jaune waved her off.

"No harm in giving it a try, right?"

Weiss shrugged. "I suppose not."

Jaune placed his fingertips between the doorframe and the door, the fine gap barely enough to get a grip on, and began to push.

The door, surprisingly, slid right open without so much as a pause of hesitation.

"Uh…" Jaune uttered, looking between the door and his hands. "That's probably foreboding, right?"

Silent nods from his team indicated that, yes, this was in fact foreboding.

"So, ladies first?"

"Hilarious, Arc. Quit your day job. Please."

* * *

Jaune wasn't surprised that the ancient tomb that was the underground of Mountain Glenn was dark.

He was surprised at how big it was, and how far down the stairs had gone.

It was an entire underground city almost as big as the one above.

They'd been down here for nearly half-an-hour and they were no closer to finding the White Fang, but they had to be down here. Jaune knew it, Blake knew it, Pyrrha and Weiss knew it.

And yet, the silence of the underground city stretched ever further, echoing even the slightest of sounds all around them. The dropping of a pebble, the snapping of an old bone underfoot, every sound sent chills down Jaune's spine, and from the looks on his team's faces, they weren't exactly enjoying the situation themselves either.

Jaune opened his mouth, halfway through preparing for words to run along his tongue and exit his mouth, when a voice, not his, not Pyrrha's, not Blake's and not Weiss's, but someone else's voice sounded out, echoing along the underground city like a gift from the gods.

Blake's amber eyes met his blue ones, and they shared a nod.

This was the White Fang, no doubt. Who else would be hiding out down here, in the middle of an abandoned cityscape buried deep beneath another abandoned cityscape?

Unless AWBN had stumbled upon a bunch of homeless people who had survived all these years, but Jaune doubted that.

Blake crept closer to the source of the noise and peeked around the corner, before darting her head back and pressing a finger to her lips.

Jaune motioned for Cadejo to cross, and Alcmena took flight silently, landing atop the largest chunk of building that had a view on whoever it was, and he felt his vision swim as his irises glowed an intense blue.

Suddenly, Jaune could see from two different angles at the same time. It was disorienting, for the first few moments, but his mind quickly adjusted, with the combined help of _System Mind_ and _System Body_.

Cadejo's other senses were only an advantage in this situation, too, and Jaune found himself able to make out the details of what they were saying, as opposed to the eerie echo that had bounced around them previously.

"I don't see what all the fuss is about, you know? It's probably another building falling apart. Why do we have to go check it?"

"I dunno. Guess it's cause we drew the short straws. At least we get away from that bastard. I'm sick of his constant offensive crap."

Jaune tuned out of Cadejo and Alcmena's senses and turned to Pyrrha and Weiss. "Two guys, White Fang gear. We can grab them quickly and quietly."

Blake raised her hand and signalled, and Jaune quickly checked with Alcmena, his eyes flickering that vibrant blue for a split-second as he checked their distance.

Once his vision had returned to his own eyes, he returned the signal, flicking up four fingers, followed by a fist.

Forty meters. They were close, parallel to them, on the other side of the ruined building. On patrol, as far as Jaune could tell. As long as they didn't need to check in, AWBN would have a rather beneficial pair of rather talkative terrorists on their hands.

Blake made her move, silently climbing through the rubble, and Pyrrha took up position on the corner where they had first seen them, rifle at the ready.

Weiss joined Pyrrha, preparing to cast a glyph if anything went wrong, and Jaune joined Cadejo at the next intersection.

Four Hunters-in-training stood waiting patiently until the first made their move.

It wasn't even thirty seconds before Blake moved, in conjunction with the rest of her team. Pyrrha stepped out and trained the rifle on the first of the two, a Faunus with a short bushy tail, and Blake wrapped her ribbon around the throat of the second, a Faunus with small antlers, and possibly the most comical way of wearing glasses and a mask Jaune had ever seen.

The first one reached for his weapon, only to have Cadejo bound up and jump atop him, using his weight to press his paws on the terrorist's shoulders, keeping him pinned, staring into the gaping maw of a heavily panting wolf.

Jaune stepped closer and knelt down next to the one pinned. "Hey. Do you wanna tell us everything, or do you want us to leave you with the big dog?"

The Faunus contemplated his options for longer than Jaune had given him credit for. "Go die, human scum!"

Jaune shrugged. "Alright, suit yourself. Cadejo?"

The wolf snarled, lowering his head closer to the Faunus until the man was staring the wolf in the eyes.

"Back, Cadejo."

Blake shoved the deer Faunus at Jaune, who caught him and held tight onto his wrists, as she pushed the wolf back.

"Do you know who I am, brother?"

The Faunus stiffened as his eyes, underneath the mask, strayed to the amber-eyed girl who stood over him.

"Yes. The traitor."

Blake scoffed. "Traitor. Easy word to say. Hard word to understand. I never betrayed the Faunus. The White Fang did."

The rabbit Faunus spat at Blake, but a quirked eyebrow from the raven-haired girl made him realise that he was still wearing his mask, and he'd just spat on the inside of it. He resolved to promptly forget about that and get to the whole insulting the girl. "You're nothing but a bitch!"

Weiss clicked her tongue against her teeth, but otherwise made no movement to defend her partner.

Jaune nodded at Weiss. She'd made the right call. "Look, you guys got names?"

The one Jaune was holding answered quickly, before his hot-headed partner could get either of them into more trouble. "I'm Perry, that's Terry."

Jaune opened his mouth, only to be interrupted. "Yes, it's a coincidence."

"Well, Perry, Terry, we can make this really simple. You tell us what we want to know, and you get your freedom. Or, we do it the hard way."

Terry laughed at that. "Ooh, the hard way, scum? I'm shaking in my boots! What, you're going to give me to Adam's little slu-"

He never got the chance to finish the insult as Blake's heel pressed into his throat. "Jaune may be innocent, but I most definitely am not," Blake hissed. "I suggest you watch your words."

"Fuck you…" Terry wheezed.

"Terry, enough! They outnumber us, and they've got a Schnee! You really think they won't torture us for the hell of it?" Perry exclaimed, nodding towards Weiss.

Weiss tensed, but a calming hand from Pyrrha held her back.

Blake took her heel off of Terry's throat, stepping back.

"Yeah, whatever Perry. I'm no coward. The Schnee bitch can do whatever she wants, they aren't getting to me."

Jaune felt like being interrupted was becoming a brand for him, as he opened his mouth and didn't even manage to get the first letter out as a massive rumbling noise drowned out what he was going to say, flushing it from his mind.

A rumbling that Jaune recognized. "Oh, no. Not again."

The giant worm burst through the cavern wall at the end of the street they were on, rotund mouth grinding whatever got in its way as it pulverised anything with its razor-sharp teeth.

It was headed their way.

Jaune began to back up, dragging Perry backwards as it closed the distance between them.

 **[Shai-Hulud]**

 **[The Devourer]**

 **[Ancient Grimm]**

 **[Level 75, Raid Boss]**

"RUN!" Jaune shouted, shoving Perry forwards and breaking into a sprint.

All concepts of stealth were thrown away like mouldy bread as Jaune, Pyrrha, Blake, and Weiss ran, Perry and Terry in tow, the Aura-less terrorists much slower.

"I'm done with this Raid Zone!" Jaune shouted as he ran, feet pounding the dust-covered road. "Let's just go home!"

His team agreed with various shouts of panic and fear as they ran.

Cadejo and Alcmena had already been dismissed, Jaune didn't want to risk them, so he didn't have a great way of seeing how close the giant worm was from him without turning around, and that wasn't something Jaune really wanted to do, but he swallowed his fear and turned.

The worm was halfway through consuming Terry, and Perry was running as fast as he could, panic visible through his mask as if it was a window to his mind.

Jaune slid to a stop, grabbed Perry by the collar, and _Sprinted_ , catching up with his team and just managing to keep pace with the extra passenger.

"Jaune!" Weiss screamed.

Jaune was too out of breath to respond, but he tried anyway. "What?!"

"Cliff!"

None of them had time to stop, and even if they had stopped, well. He'd seen what happened to Terry.

Jaune jumped, and so did the rest of AWBN.

Much like the Initiation, Jaune had absolutely no plan as to how to land a jump from this height.

However, he was lacking Mana this time, carrying a passenger, and probably going to die to a giant worm Grimm.

At this moment, as he soared through the air, Jaune considered letting go of Perry. The man was a terrorist, a murderer most likely, and here Jaune was, risking his life to save the Faunus's.

' _He has important information. Too important to lose. Besides, you're no killer.'_

Jaune had one option. He pooled his Aura.

* * *

All Jaune could feel was pain. Serious, complete pain. His entire body was on fire, nerves active in a flurry of firing neurons, distributing the feeling of agony across his entire mind.

"Ow…" Jaune groaned, attempting to sit up.

He could not. In fact, Jaune couldn't feel anything but pain. Wait, no, there was a fingertip. He could feel a fingertip. He was making progress.

"Jaune, are you okay?"

He recognized the voice, but it was coming from behind him, and he couldn't move his head to look. "M'fine."

His voice was muffled by the fact that his head was currently pressed into rock.

"Are you sure, Jaune?" Weiss asked again, gingerly kneeling and rolling him onto his front.

Jaune got to watch as her face turned from one of concern to horror. "Oh, gods."

Jaune couldn't feel it, or he could, his head was a swirling mismatch of pain and agony, but whatever it was, Weiss was horrified. "Wha' is i'?"

"Your face is… missing." Weiss stumbled out, staring wide-eyed at her leader.

"Ah," Jaune let out. "Righ'."

Pyrrha crawled over to her partner, wincing. "Is your healing working, Jaune?"

Jaune waved the only hand he could feel. "Ge'in there."

Suddenly, Jaune could feel his arms, and a whole new wave of agony overcame what rational thought he had left. "Agh!"

He'd broken his spine. Completely. He'd had a sixty kilo Faunus land on him without his full Aura from a jump that was beyond what was to be expected of any of them.

"Jaune, we need to move. Is there anything you can do to speed this up?"

Jaune couldn't nod, but he began to do what he could regardless.

His Stat Menu was brought up, and Jaune let out another groan of agony as a tear leaked out of his eye, but he ignored it, metaphorically shrugging it off and pushing his finger against the button.

Ten Stat Points quickly slotted themselves into his END, and suddenly he felt slightly better, as if his healing had kicked itself up a notch. It hadn't, but it was a comfort nonetheless. Instead of increasing his HP/s, he'd just increased his maximum HP. So, technically, he was less injured now. His face certainly felt a bit better, and Weiss and Pyrrha no longer looked terrified to look him in the eyes. That was good.

Also, as his arm worked, he pushed himself upright.

"Long fall, huh," He remarked, coughing out the blood that had pooled in his mouth as his other arm healed, slowly.

Pyrrha looked back where they'd come from. "Wouldn't be the first time. Mountain Glenn must have been built on top of a network of caverns, some of which appear to only have been unearthed recently.

"Where's Blake?" Jaune asked, as his leg let out a sickening sound, the bone realigning.

Weiss winced, but motioned over her shoulder. "She's with the prisoner. The _unintentional_ prisoner."

The point was clear, Jaune didn't need the white-haired heiress to spell it out for him.

"Nothing really went to plan, Weiss. Bad luck, I guess."

"Hmph. I just wish we didn't have to deal with falling into holes and that giant worm. Once was more than enough, that's for sure."

Another sickening snap indicated that Jaune's other leg had repositioned itself. "Mmph, that hurts. Trust me, I don't like it any more than you do. Are you guys okay?"

Weiss waved him off. Our Aura's took the vast majority of the impact, and our semblances helped slow us down. You were the only one of us impeded, and you had extra weight."

Jaune nodded. "Good. That's good. Impeded is a pretty good way to put it, but I'm going to have to get used to not using my Mana. It's dangerous, Ozpin was right, and I can't go showing it off."

"Well, you have time to think about how you plan on going about either disguising it, or deciding on what you want your publicised semblance to be. Still a while yet before the Vytal Festival," Pyrrha mentioned, adjusting her leg armor. "If I were you, I'd suggest you use _Terrakinesis_ or something that is more easily explained. Control over earth is far more easily explained."

Jaune clambered to his feet, the two girls helping him up. "I'll put some thought into it. I don't want whatever I chose to be a major limit in any way, but I can't just level the entire arena with another Mana Surge and just play it off as my semblance."

Jaune stepped over to Blake, shaking off any lingering pain and inspecting Perry.

"Is he dead?"

Blake shook her head. "No. I pulled him off of you, and he saw you. I don't think he realised that that kind of injury isn't even the worst thing he's caused. There's a difference between supporting a cause, and killing for a cause. I can only he assume he's never done the latter."

"He fainted because he saw blood?" Jaune asked, looking up in surprise.

"It would appear so. Actually, it benefits us, we managed to save the weak-minded terrorist. He should be able to give us information."

Jaune nodded. "I guess so. Any ideas on how to get out of here?"

Blake shrugged. "Now as for that, I'm at a loss. I assumed you would just do the same thing we did last time, and tunnel us up."

"Yeah, true, but we have to wait here for a while. There's still a little over an hour until I get my Mana back, plus the time it takes to recharge. I don't know if the worm is trying to follow us."

Blake winced. "I would definitely appreciate if it wasn't, but with you around, I can only expect a modicum of luck."

Jaune let a smirk slip out. "Probably has to do with the black cat that crossed my path when I first arrived in Vale."

"You're lucky you're a friend of my friends."

"Harsh."

* * *

Good news: Jaune had his Mana back.

Bad news: There was a distant rumbling that was growing closer, and it was remarkably familiar.

Perry had woken, seemed almost more terrified now that Jaune was fully healed, and decided to follow their every order. For all the White Fang fought for freedom and abolition of servitude, it appeared that Perry was more than willing to give all that up for what he perceived to be a threat to his life.

Granted, Weiss was a terrifying figure to him, Pyrrha was exclusively known by her reputation as an unbeatable fighter, Blake disliked Perry intensely for reasons that Jaune would not will anyone to delve into, not until Blake was far more relaxed, and Jaune was also not doing anything to dissuade Perry of the image that he was an immortal god sent down to smite the wrongdoers.

Perry also didn't want to make a break for it, because he was stuck in a deep cavern with a giant Grimm worm, and the only way out was the horror that was Jaune, so Perry simply resolved himself to silently walk between Pyrrha and Blake, keeping his head down as Jaune carved them a path.

As Jaune walked, balancing a _Candlelight_ over his shoulder, one hand held forward as he carved their path, his other hand congealed glowing energy.

Jaune hadn't been training many of his skills during his downtime, and that had been a mistake.

So, as he walked, Jaune used _Soul Harvest_.

It was slow going, but it was still going, and every time he passed a certain grid-square on his map, the soul level on the reader would fluctuate, and he would be able to use _Soul Harvest_ again.

He still hadn't gained any XP from it, though, which was both annoying and nerve-wracking.

They hadn't exited the Raid Zone yet, obviously, and that scared Jaune. It meant that the worm was still within their range, or at least somewhat able to know where they were.

The rumbling had gotten quieter, thankfully, falling silent some time ago, but that didn't mean that it hadn't developed some kind of stealth ability, and was inches away from them, about to burst through and-

Jaune cut that thought off, shaking his head. That was ridiculous. The worm hadn't invented stealth tech. It was a giant worm, it didn't need stealth.

They were close to the surface, though, they had to be. In fact, according to Jaune's map, they were also relatively close to Vale, too.

Another Soul Orb formed in his hand as he walked, and he knew that Perry was still looking at him in shock and amazement, but it wasn't as if it mattered what the Faunus terrorist knew about him. Without a doubt, Ozpin would hand him over to Atlas, they'd get the information out of him, and mount an attack on Mountain Glenn.

It was, metaphorically and soon-to-be literally, out of their hands.

Jaune knew there was absolutely no way Blake would just accept that as it was.

At least Weiss would be happy with the result, but Blake was going to try and get information out of their captive, there was absolutely no way she wouldn't.

Which meant that either Jaune had to find a way to convince her otherwise, or, failing that, explain to her that going back to Mountain Glenn was going to be a bad idea.

Well, a worse idea than it had been going in there the first time.

The stone and dense dirt was giving way to loamier, looser muck, and Jaune kept up the _Terrakinesis_ , redoubling his efforts to carve through.

He kept it up for nearly another minute before he could see tree roots, then grass roots, then finally sunlight as they breached the surface, stepping up and looking around.

In the distance, sunlight streaming down, AWBN and their captive could see Vale, as unchanged as it always seemed to be.

Jaune, Pyrrha and Weiss let out relieved breaths, and Blake turned and pointed Gambol Shroud's barrel at Perry, anger etched into her face.

"You're going to talk, or this will be the last sight you ever see."

* * *

 **Well, that technically wraps up the majority of the assignment. Or at least, kind of does. Before I move on to reviews, a couple things I'd like to mention.**

 **Firstly, the Raid Loot. I wrote an entire series of RNG-based loot tables, and used them to determine all the loot that dropped, including the raid-specific loot. Things like the Stamina Potion, the book, all of this was completely at the mercy of RNGesus. I'm glad it worked out, it could've easily pushed a lot of things back, but I wanted to take the risk and write this as if it was a game moreso than many other Gamer-fics end up being. This kind of writing is experimental for not only myself, but for you all as well.**

 **Secondly, I've noticed a few people mention this, but Goodwitch's decision to punish AWBN by sending them out, and the point that has been made about negligence and such. I am still going to address this in the story, but I felt I needed to talk about it now, as it is becoming more and more prevalent with each chapter.**

 **Glynda is Ozpin's right hand woman, and as such is aware of Jaune's abilities. Likewise, Glynda is not solely in charge of how the assignments were organised. There is a reason I've chosen to go about this, but mostly it's the point that these students are supposed to be the best of the best recruited for Beacon. The world is a dangerous place, and the students need to understand the potential dangers out there.**

 **Except Glynda and Ozpin would never willingly place students in the serious amount of danger that AWBN have been placed in. That's on Jaune, and that's for later to be explained and explored.**

 **Alright, that's out of the way, let's move onto reviews!**

 **merendinoemiliano: Hey, that's okay! I was glad to have you while I did, and I wish you luck with finding something more towards your tastes!**

 **Sebazu: Not the only reason, but that's fair to say. I do tend to keep a lot of stuff close to my chest, and there were a few reasons that I didn't explain.**

 **armentho: Well, uh... the Mana Impact damage calculation I set up should at least keep you somewhat happy. Turns out the Karman line is pretty much a great way to destroy anything, if you catch my drift.**

 **adislt: You make a great point when it comes to the location. I didn't quite realise that it has been a number of chapters now that have been the assignment, and you reminded me that I needed to wrap it up soon enough. Set equipment is a little harder to set up story-wise, but I have been trying to work on some in the background. One of the things I haven't actually done is gear and equipment, that page on the spreadsheet is disappointingly lacking, but I will put some focus on it soon enough.**

 **Kane: Toxic blade is actually a neat idea, and more technically correct, so I may change it to that. As for your snake-info, that's one of the few things that is drilled into our heads in primary school. That's what happens when you grow up in the bush in Australia. Dugites, man, I've seen plenty of them in playgrounds.**

 **razmire: I can, without a doubt, confirm that there are a wide variety of alchemical creations waiting to be found/discovered/created. As for Skooma-esq potions, well, reality has plenty of them already. Shouldn't be too hard to implement.**

 **DuplicateUserName: Interesting. Whenever I think of Drain skills, I usually think of vampiric effects, like drain health. Drain Air confuses me, I'm not quite sure what you mean.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Good gods, that's... Overkill Rally is a great idea, and may be implemented, though in a slightly different way, maybe as a perk, and Potion Bullet is definitely a cool concept, and might also be implemented in one way or another, but Maglev Terrain? That's just... so circumstantially awesome. I have absolutely no idea when that could be used, but man does it sound cool. I'll keep it in mind, though. You never know.**

 **dirtrevor: Nah. I don't think a world like Remnant should be easy. In the early chapters I'm pretty sure the System said as much.**

 **Adro-Sama: Multi-classing has always been a great feature in games, tabletop or otherwise. Shame he can't really fight the giant worm with or without Mana. At the moment, anyway.**

 **Hatelove731: That is planned, don't worry. Eternal weapons is a great term for it, though.**

 **TooShyToLogin: Stances are a really good idea, actually, and I may implement them as an unlock from reaching a certain point in skill levels. Thanks!**

 **Shadow of God: I hope you read the above points, but as for casting while holding a weapon, I do have an idea for that. For now, though, it serves the purpose of pointing out that Jaune is still getting used to his semblance, and whilst sometimes he has the time and wherewithal to sheath Crocea Mors, sometimes he just doesn't have that option. It's just a little thing I enjoy, too.**

 **Alright, that about does it for reviews this week. Good shit, all of you, glad to see so many of you as involved in this as I am! Thanks to all of you for reading!**

 **As usual, you can support me on Pat Reon, AFatFlyingWhale, and talk to me on Twitter, fat_flying, I'd really appreciate it!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	32. The Assignment: Finale

**Kept you waiting, huh?**

 **Sorry. A little late, because I forgot. Oops? I might've been busy watching Captain Marvel. Good movie, I recommend. Great for changing the subject.**

* * *

Jaune didn't have time for the list of notifications that appeared in front of him, quickly dismissing them and stepping towards Blake, as she closed the distance between herself and Perry, who was crawling backwards.

At least, he had been, until his back pressed up against a tree, emerald green leaves swaying in the wind as Perry remained very silent.

Except for the squeak of fear, but that was forgivable, considering the circumstances.

"Blake, stop!" Jaune called out, but Blake ignored him.

"Start talking!" She shouted in his face, barrel still pointed right at him.

Jaune had thought he'd have just the slightest bit more time before Blake decided to threaten their captive, but it was clear this was not the case. "Blake, stop, please. We'll hand him to Ozpin, or the police, or something, but not this!"

Blake turned on her heel, staring intently at her leader. "All we did, it was to get information on the White Fang, Jaune. I'm not going to let that slip away, not now. Whatever it takes."

Jaune shook his head. "You're going to become just like them? That's it?"

Blake turned away. "I'd never kill an innocent person!"

"What happened to the girl who claimed the White Fang were just misled?"

Blake rounded on him again, not even sparing a glance to her teammates or Perry, who was still cowering against the tree trunk. "They are!"

"Then why are you threatening to kill one of them!?" Jaune fired back, gesturing at their terrified captive.

"Because I'm afraid of what they'll do if I don't stop it!"

Jaune paused, as Blake looked away once more, towards Vale. "If I, we, don't do something, it'll be too late, and then those deaths will be on us, Jaune."

Jaune let out a sigh, before walking over to their captive. "Look, Perry, right?"

Perry nodded.

"I don't want to hurt you. Blake here doesn't either, but the difference is is that Blake will if she feels she has to. Just tell us what we want to know, and we can all walk away without getting hurt. Fair?"

Perry nodded.

"Can you walk and talk?" Jaune asked, helping the Faunus to his feet.

Perry, once again, nodded.

"Good. I want to make good time to Vale, and you have some questions to answer. Let's move."

* * *

Jaune led the way through the forest towards Vale, keeping a steady pace alongside Weiss, with Pyrrha and Blake bringing up the rear, Perry in between the two, filling in any questions Blake had with a more muted version of his previous terrified expression.

They weren't too far from Vale now, only an hour or two, something Jaune was grateful for, and considering it was roughly noon, the shortcut through Mountain Glenn had worked out in their favour, no matter how disastrous or not it had been.

"Weiss," Jaune began, leaning to his teammate and speaking in a hushed whisper. "I want you to do me a favour."

Weiss quirked an eyebrow, looking up at her leader. "What could you possibly need me to do, Arc?"

"I want you to keep an eye on Blake, when we get back. She's not going to leave this alone, and I get why, but we can't just keep throwing ourselves at the enemy and hoping for the best," Jaune answered. "And, if it isn't too much, try and figure out a way to either distract her or to help her relax."

Weiss's expression morphed into one of concern. "I understand, but I'm not sure why you think I'll be able to help. Most wouldn't call me relaxing, or distracting."

Jaune shrugged. "You're her partner. I get that I can be a little… distracting, myself, with everything that's happening, but your partner needs help, whether or not she admits it."

Weiss spared a glance behind, where Blake was interrogating Perry. "You continue to surprise, Arc. I think that's the first time you've ever been right."

Jaune rolled his eyes at that. "One of these days, you'll learn to be a nicer person to me. Not today, probably, but at some point."

Weiss let out a small chuckle. "Don't hold your breath, Arc."

With that, Weiss slowed slightly, catching pace with Blake, walking alongside her and offering the occasional tidbit of information or a line of questioning to assist in the information gathering.

It left Jaune alone at the head of their little convoy, but it gave him time to finally go over his notifications, ones that he'd been missing since they'd entered Mountain Glenn, and ones he was glad to say provided a little bit of comfort.

At what point Jaune had started to look at his semblance as normalcy he couldn't say.

 **[Raid Zone Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 874,809 XP!]**

 **[You've reached Level 31! +15 Stat Points!]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[A title has ranked up! Your Huntsman Rank is now Trained!]**

 **[Skill** _ **Aura Control**_ **has unlocked a specialty for reaching beyond Level 25!]**

 **[Perk** _ **Aura Suppression**_ **has been unlocked!]**

 **[Skill** _ **Soul Harvest**_ **has unlocked a specialty for reaching Level 10!]**

 **[You are now able to create Regular Quality Soul Orbs!]**

Jaune was a little overwhelmed, but he read through it anyway. "Aura Suppression?"

It was beyond him for the time being, something he'd have to experiment with later on, but he'd managed to create twelve Minor Soul Orbs and reached level ten, so it was definitely worth it. Now, if only he knew what else he could use Soul Orbs for, other than summoning Bound Souls.

Which he was going to try again once they returned to Vale. Now wasn't the greatest time, not with a spectator, although Jaune suspected he had more important things on his mind at that point in time.

They also had to stop moving whilst Jaune performed the ritual, so that was another point towards leaving it for later, and Jaune decided to, once again, follow his gut instinct.

Another part of his gut instinct reacted to external stimuli in an instant, and as _Danger Sense_ flared up, Jaune rolled to the side, sword smoothly drawn from its sheath as he avoided the Boarbatusk that had attempted to gore him.

A quick _Observe_ told him that it was a much lower level than what he had been facing in Mountain Glenn, telltale signs that Vale was close, and as Jaune sidestepped its second charge and buried Crocea Mors into its side, the porcine-Grimm squealed that typical Boarbatusk squeal.

Pyrrha's javelin punctured the one that had come up behind Jaune, cracking the faceplate from the strength of the throw, and a glyph from Weiss flung the third and final into the air, where Jaune skeet-shot it out of the air with a tasteful _Spinning Mana Arrow_ , the single projectile carving a nicely shaped hole through the beast.

The fight had only lasted a few seconds, and proved a pretty serious point to Perry. Had he chosen to resist like Terry had, the Faunus would not have ended up so lucky.

And Terry had been devoured by a giant Grimm worm, something that would haunt Perry's nightmares for the rest of his life, which the man assumed was going to be in his tiny little cell in Atlas, for the rest of his life.

That was preferable to what would've awaited him, or so he thought.

"We're only minutes away from Vale, team. Let's get there and get some rest in actual beds," Jaune said, a smile on his face.

It was almost palpable, the relief that he and his team were emitting. Even Perry's continued existence struggled to put a damper on their good mood, and even Blake seemed more at ease.

To Perry, it was almost as if the Grimm posed these four no threat. They barely paid any attention to them, they barely reacted whenever they were attacked.

Were he back in the White Fang, a Boarbatusk attack like that would've taken at least one or two of their squad down with injuries, possibly even a fatality if they didn't react in time to the threat. They would've had to form up, resolve themselves, and take on the Boarbatusks with concentrated fire.

AWBN, a name Perry was beginning to fear, seemed to have no trouble whatsoever with these threats.

The advantages of Aura and Semblances, Perry supposed. If it wasn't for the negative effects Aura had on the vast population, Perry had no doubt the White Fang would be a more serious threat than it was.

Of course, that was information he'd already given to the traitor, not that he would ever call her that to her face. Or even behind her back. It was dangerous enough to even think the words, who knew if they could read minds?

Suddenly, they were in Vale.

It caught Perry off-guard. One moment, they'd been in the forest, then the next thing he knew he was stepping through the gates, and the police were looking at him in disdain. Half were probably racists, others just angry at his choice of profession.

Had he gotten so caught up in his own thoughts that he'd simply blanked out?

Was it shock, or fear?

Perry didn't know.

What Perry did know was that he was being loaded onto a Bullhead, which was soaring towards Beacon.

Perry recognized Beacon. Everyone did, it was quite a stand-out kind of place. Even if you didn't know Vale, you knew Beacon. Perry did know Vale, but that was beside the point. Not once had he ever thought he'd step foot anywhere near Beacon, and yet as the Bullhead landed and he was shoved out, his mind was whirling.

And then in front of Perry, the somewhat well-meaning terrorist, stood two of the most terrifying people he'd ever heard of.

Ozpin, headmaster of Beacon.

And General James Ironwood of the Atlesian Military. White Fang's most wanted.

What could only be described as cheerful fury written into his face.

* * *

"Good to have you back, Team AWBN. I see you've brought us a guest?"

Ozpin seemed amused by their captive.

"Yes, sir. We found a White Fang outpost in Mountain Glenn, and managed to capture him. We brought him back for you to hand to Atlas, but…" Jaune said, trailing off with a gesture towards the intimidating man that stood to the side of Ozpin.

"Well done, Mr Arc. Your commitment to helping the people of Vale has not gone unnoticed. My name is James Ironwood, General of the Atlesian Military and Headmaster of Atlas Academy. It is a pleasure to meet you and your team, though it would not be the first time for some."

General Ironwood was imposing, that much Jaune had to admit, but Weiss's relief was almost palpable, and the small smile the General gave her was enough to relieve the chills the man gave him whenever that gaze strayed over him.

"A pleasure to meet you, sir. We're glad to help," Jaune said, nodding politely.

Two soldiers emerged from behind Ironwood, rifles at the ready as they took Perry from Blake's grip, one cuffing him whilst the other kept her rifle trained on Perry.

They quickly began escorting him away, another Bullhead, painted in Atlesian colors, hovering nearby.

All in all, it was an efficient showing, something Jaune realised was not the norm. There was absolutely no way they were that effective usually. Either it was because they were in front of the General, or because the General was proving a point.

Jaune suspected it was the latter. Ironwood was close to Ozpin, that much was clear. If he knew about the System, there were a number of things the man might be doing.

"I imagine that you and your team would appreciate some rest, Mr Arc. I suggest you all head back to your dorm," Ozpin said, taking a sip from his mug. "Oh, and Mr Arc, I'd like you to meet me in my office at your earliest convenience."

Jaune gave a weary nod, suddenly aware of how tired he was. Adrenaline could only last for so long, after all. "Yes, sir. Thank you sir."

Jaune and his team stepped past the headmaster and began to make their way along Beacon's promenade, heading deeper within the campus.

Beacon was conspicuously empty, lacking all the first year Hunters that would normally be making their way around, heading to whatever classes they had scheduled. All of them appeared to be out on their assignments still.

Jaune barely paid attention to where his feet stepped, and it was clear his team felt much the same.

Sleep was wanted, and it didn't matter what time it was. A bed, safety, and a bathroom, that was all they needed.

Tomorrow. They could deal with everything else tomorrow.

As the door creaked open and they were greeted with a small amount of dust in the air, slightly stale air not bothering them even slightly as Weiss, somehow given a burst of speed, slipped into the bathroom, whilst the rest of them just slumped into their beds.

Jaune doubted he could make it to the time where he would be able to have a shower, but Jaune ignored the urge.

He needed one, if he didn't have one, he'd regret it.

Which meant he had time to kill. Jaune brought up his latest notification, which had pinged whilst they'd been headed to their room.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Huntsman: First Steps (Part 4)**_ **]**

 **[Survive the Beacon Assignment.]**

 **[Rewards: 60,000 XP, 2 Skill Books]**

Jaune's face wore an expression of tired pride, and as he checked his inventory, he noticed that he now had three unread skill books. And now, he had time to read them.

Tiredly, Jaune looked between his three possibilities. "Which to choose…"

He looked up. "Blake."

The girl glanced up at him. "What?"

"Left, middle or right?"

Blake looked confused, but shrugged. "Right."

Jaune withdrew the book that sat in the rightmost slot of the three books, and settled back.

"'Gravity Dust and Its Uses', huh?" Jaune said aloud, reading the title. He flipped the cover open, and sighed. A blank page greeted him.

"One of these days, I'd like to read a book that actually had words in it."

Blake and Pyrrha barely paid him any attention as he hit yes on the notification that popped up, and the book glowed brightly.

 **[Subskill learned!]**

 **[You've unlocked Gravity for** _ **Elemental Infusion**_ **!]**

He hadn't seen that one coming.

Jaune felt too tired to truly appreciate what he'd just unlocked, instead rubbing at his eyes. Weiss exited the bathroom and Blake and Pyrrha played a quick game of rock, paper, scissors in order to decide who would go next.

As Pyrrha stood and entered, Blake returning to her book, Weiss clambered into her bed and let out a sigh of blissful relief. Jaune let out a small chuckle, which promptly turned into a yawn, and stood up, trying to keep blood flowing through his body, trying to stay awake.

Two more skill books, two more left, but he was considering leaving them for the next day, when he had energy, but then again, he had a meeting with the headmaster, and if that wasn't a terrifying notion.

Jaune withdrew the second of three books from his inventory, the one that had dropped during Mountain Glenn, and tapped the accept button without even bothering to read it.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Phase Shift (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now phase in and out of existence at will for a short burst of time, allowing you to phase through solid objects at will. Costs 100 MP/s._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

Now that was a skill that sounded a lot more awesome from the get-go. Sure, it cost nearly twenty times the amount of Mana per second he could regenerate, but being able to turn incorporeal at will?

Too good to pass up for so many reasons. Some of which Jaune swore he would never think about again.

Pyrrha stepped out of the bathroom and Blake got up, and as the door closed behind the black-haired Faunus, Pyrrha slumped into her bed, echoing Weiss's relief.

Speaking of, Weiss was already out like a lightbulb, and it looked like Pyrrha was following suit.

Jaune shrugged his shoulders, trying to stay awake, and pulled out the third and final skill book from his inventory, once again simply hitting accept.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Mindbend (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can alter a target's mental state to invoke a mental effect. Mental effects wear off after some time. Costs 100 MP to cast._ _**Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

Jaune wasn't one hundred percent sure what mental effects he could invoke, but he had a psychic skill. That was incredible. He was one step closer to being able to create mind control.

Actually, now that Jaune thought about it, he was becoming almost a walking talking lawsuit waiting to happen. Mind control, incorporeality, what was next, invisibility? Telekinesis?

Actually, that last one wasn't so far-fetched, not that anything was far-fetched anymore. He already had _Terrakinesis_ , what was one more -kinesis kind of skill?

Blake stepped out, and Jaune stepped in, practiced efficiency at work, and as he showered, barely able to keep his eyes open, he realised something crucial.

He was going to have to go back to Mountain Glenn, if just to get the Raid Loot that dropped. It was already some of the most valuable stuff he'd gotten so far, if not monetarily but utilitywise.

The Stamina Potion, for example. That was worth so much more than however much Lien it would sell for. If he could reverse engineer it, or figure out how to make it, that would be massive. He could figure out how to make other kinds of potions, and he hadn't been kidding completely when he said he could make a significant amount of Lien from selling them. It would be good experience, too, for what he assumed would be the relevant skill.

Jaune cut off the lukewarm water and stepped out, quickly equipping the tracksuit he'd gotten to replace his poor neglected onesie and opened the door, preparing to sink into his bed like the rest of his team had done with theirs. Blake and Pyrrha had joined Weiss in the land of the unconscious, and Jaune was more than willing to follow suit.

His eyes were closed before he'd made it halfway to the bed, and by the time he'd slumped into it, he was already asleep.

* * *

Waking at dawn was unexpectedly something Jaune was now used to, thanks to his time out in the wilderness these past few days.

Of course, sleeping from the previous afternoon until now was also probably a factor, he'd had to have slept at least twelve hours, and from the looks of things, so had the rest of AWBN. Of course, they still seemed to be asleep, so it was safe to say they cared less about habits than Jaune did.

Or were more tired. Both were equally fair statements.

Jaune stretched as he climbed out of bed, quietly using inventory to swap clothes to his uniform. Classes weren't going to be for another couple days whilst the rest of the first-years filtered back in from the outer wilderness, but he didn't exactly have a clean pair of clothes than weren't his uniform, not until later today at least.

Closing the dorm's door quietly behind him, Jaune stepped out into the empty corridor, and began to walk, no real destination in mind.

It didn't take long until he found himself at Beacon's cliffside once more, nostalgia flowing through his mind.

"It's been less than two weeks, and I'm nostalgic? Man, I need to get out more."

No one laughed at his joke, partially because no one was there to laugh, and partially because it wasn't all that funny to begin with, but Jaune shrugged it off, already forming an idea in his head.

One hand outstretched, Jaune activated _Terrakinesis_ and began to carve into the cliffside, slowly making his way downwards towards the Emerald Forest.

He was making a stairway.

Gods, he was smart.

It seemed like an age since he'd suggested it, and now it was a reality. It was almost worth all the near-death experiences.

Jaune continued to carve the stone steps into the side of the cliff, carefully making sure to keep an even distance between each step, on all three axis. Just the right width, just the right height, just the right length.

It took at least ten minutes, not that Jaune was counting, but when he was finished, he let out a laugh. It was, without a doubt, perfect.

It was also one of the more absurd things he'd ever done. And he might've made Ozpin a little angry, as he technically had just defaced the campus.

Well, he could argue it was just an unapproved construction project. Ozpin couldn't be that mad, surely. At least the rest of AWBN and RRYN would be happy they didn't have to climb up whenever they decided to come train down here.

Now, Jaune had more spare time on his hands, and a few new skills to test out. Or, well, two out of three. Without a target, it would be difficult to test _Mindbend_ , and Jaune didn't think that it would work if he cast it on himself.

Or it would, and the effect would knock him out, or something equally as bad. Then, unconscious and alone in the Emerald Forest, some kind of weak Grimm would slouch out, eat him, and retire back into wherever it had come from, satisfied with itself.

Safe to say, Jaune was going to test his other new things before he even considered trying _Mindbend_.

' _First things first. Let's try Phase Shift.'_

And Jaune did. Walking up to a tree, Jaune cast _Phase Shift_ , and watched as his arm, and whatever was connected to his arm, flickered in and out of reality. It took a few seconds to fully cast before the flickering occured, and Jaune really only had a couple seconds of incorporeality, but he quickly tried to punch the tree, rapidly withdrawing his hand.

It passed straight through, a ghostly trail left in his arm's wake, before his arm went solid once more. He'd run out of Mana, six seconds worth of incorporeality as it was at the current time, but it was plenty enough to prove that it worked, and was useful. If he ever needed to get through a door really quickly…

As for combat applications, as it was, it was rather limited. Sure, he was impossible to hit, but that came at the cost of being unable to hit anything, and the time limit was severe. If it was longer, he had no doubt he could take advantage of it and position himself in order to take advantage of his intangibility, but that was not the case.

Maybe when he had more Mana at his disposal, Jaune supposed.

So, six seconds of _Phase Shift_ and nearly two minutes worth of MP regen each time he used it. At least he knew the math behind it, that made it much easier to understand.

Once the two minutes had passed, Jaune, now with a full Mana pool once again, began to wrap his head around _Gravity Infusion_.

Which had many more combat applications.

It might've been more accurate to say that Jaune was beginning to warp his head around _Gravity Infusion_.

A _Gravity-Infused Mana Bolt_ was very similar to a regular _Mana Bolt_ , but instead of dissipating on impact, it left a little purple glowing orb that seemed to draw objects towards it.

Sure, it didn't have all that great a range on the attraction, but it was strong. It sucked in grass, dirt and loose rubble into its center.

Until it pulsed outwards, sending whatever it had grabbed soaring back out, with some considerable speed.

Jaune had to duck in order to avoid being smacked in the face by a pebble that may or may not have been going at over a hundred kilometers an hour.

A _Mana Pulse_ infused with Gravity appeared to do a similar thing, just on a much more powerful scale. Chunks of earth and half of a tree got sucked into the swirling purple vortex before they too were launched outwards, and instead of ducking this time Jaune had to properly leap out of the way, lest he be an agricultural casualty.

He had no idea if the tree had reached orbit or not, but from the loud thwump in the distance and the terrified chirping of birds, he had to assume that it had not, in fact, breached the atmosphere.

Interestingly, _Mana Grenade_ seemed to operate almost exactly the opposite of _Mana Bolt_ and _Mana Pulse_. Upon detonation, it pushed everything away from it with some hefty force, and Jaune felt himself sliding backwards, boots digging into the dirt and leaving a trail in front of him.

 _Mana Bullet_ and _Mana Arrow_ , along with their spinning variants, all seemed to operate the same, dealing increased knockback and sending the target floating for a few seconds. That was strange to watch, the rock that Jaune had shot kind of levitating backwards before hitting the ground with a loud whump.

There were a few spells that Jaune couldn't quite figure out, like _Mana Disc_ and _Mana Shield_ , but there was one standout, if only for the visual it created.

 _Gravity-Infused Mana Quake_ looked amazing.

Instead of simply cracking the ground beneath him, it instead tore chunks out of it and floated them, creating almost like a maze of rubble, blocking vision and looking incredibly intimidating as one large chunk rose up underneath Jaune, holding him up above it.

Combining it with a _Gravity-Infused Mana Calamity_ was even more incredible, as it caused anything that entered the area of effect to be hit with an anti-gravity effect, and the Ursa that had decided to investigate found that the hard way as it turned end over end in the air, confusion written into its bear face.

The last thing Jaune decided to try was a _Gravity-Infused Mana Lance_ , and the Ursa proved to be an excellent target.

It hit the Ursa hard, and did two things. Firstly, it killed the Ursa with the impact. Secondly, it absolutely launched its body into the stratosphere, far enough where it was only a speck in the distance.

Jaune actually couldn't see it anymore, and he wasn't sure if it was just _Mana Lance_ that did it, or if it was a combo with the anti-gravity effects of _Mana Calamity_.

Either way, Jaune let out a shocked laugh, as the ground that floated beneath him smashed into the ground.

He stumbled out of the pockmarked rubble, using _Terrakinesis_ to smooth it out, before he let out another shocked laugh.

"I think the mental image of that Ursa is going to stay with me for the rest of my life," Jaune said aloud, almost breathlessly, as he continued to laugh.

After nearly a minute of catching his breath and telling himself not to get hysterical, Jaune managed to sway to his feet from where he'd sat down.

Cadejo emerged from Jaune's shadow as the teen went about covering the damage he'd done, padding along slowly behind him.

It was at this point that Jaune had a brilliant idea. Calling upon Alcmena, Jaune bent down and grabbed a stick off of the ground and shook it in front of Cadejo.

"C'mon, boy, fetch the stick!"

It was a simple request, and Cadejo looked ecstatic to have been given it, and so Jaune tossed it high into the air.

Cadejo leaped for it, trying to beat its flight path, but Alcmena, prepared and waiting, caught it, soaring above with a victorious squawk.

Cadejo, naturally, took this as a challenge, and began to lope along, building up speed as Alcmena swooped overhead, leading the wolf-summon on what could only be called a wild heron chase.

As the two ran and flew around, Jaune opened his inventory, withdrawing the next component.

The Ursa he'd sent flying had reminded him that he had loot that had dropped that he could use for Bound Souls, and speaking of, there was an Ursa Pelt and 400 Lien on the ground where the Ursa had been.

Jaune quickly dropped them into his inventory, before changing his mind and taking the Ursa Pelt out.

A quick attempt at the summoning ritual had no success, as it required five Minor Soul Orbs, but Jaune quickly withdrew them as well, adding them to the ritual and beginning again.

The clearing glowed bright as Jaune himself shone, and after some time, Jaune was not alone. Or, at least, it wasn't just Jaune. Cadejo and Alcmena, who had both gotten distracted, were investigating, curious.

In front of Jaune sat a bear, similar in visual design to Cadejo and Alcmena, though its fur was marked more often with that typical Arc insignia, golden fur standing out on the black.

Bone plating over the face and joints shone white in the sunlight, and piercing eyes stared into Jaune's own.

For once, Jaune already had a name for this summon. "Hello, Callisto."

* * *

Callisto also came with a perk, something Jaune was expecting.

 **[Perk Gained!]**

 **[** _ **Bearskin:**_ **Your connection with the soul of an Ursa gives you 50% Ice resistance, and you are no longer bothered by anything but extreme cold.]**

Jaune had to admit, if he ever decided to go to Atlas, at least he wouldn't freeze to death.

Also, as a somewhat more important thought, Callisto was big. Unsurprisingly, she was bear-sized. And not like small bear-sized, either.

Big bear-sized.

Why she thought that meant she could sit atop Jaune like some kind of lapdog Jaune did not know, but by the gods did she try.

Jaune had to physically scramble backwards in order to avoid having his entire lower half crushed, and he'd felt pain similar to that before.

Not again, not this soon.

Callisto didn't seem all that bothered by Jaune's near-paralysis, making herself comfortable where she'd sat and waiting patiently.

Jaune stepped closer and gave the bear a tentative rub on the belly, and Callisto fell backwards.

"Big softy," Jaune remarked, as she rolled on her back.

"I thought I'd find you down here, Jaune."

Jaune turned around. "Hey, Pyrrha. Sleep well?"

Pyrrha gave a rueful smile. "Considering the circumstances, I'd say I slept magnificently. I see you've made a new friend?"

Jaune nodded. "Pyrrha, Callisto. Callisto, Pyrrha."

Pyrrha gave a polite bow, and Callisto barely moved, content with the belly rub she was currently receiving.

"So, how many does this make now? Three?" Pyrrha asked, holding her arm out for Alcmena to land on it.

The Stymphalian Soul undoubtedly favoured Pyrrha over the rest of AWBN, which must've had something to do with their shared Mistralian heritage, and it was clear that Pyrrha enjoyed her company.

Of course, that wasn't to sat that Cadejo went forgotten, as Jaune had a second hand.

"Yeah. I need two regular quality Soul Orbs for my fourth, and I can't do that until tomorrow, but I think I might wait anyway. I don't know if I have any good drops to use as components, and I don't know if there's something special about the way I summon things that could change it."

Pyrrha nodded. "Still at a loss when it comes to figuring things out?"

Jaune let out a laugh. "Yeah, you could say that. Trial and error, it's my motto."

"I forgot to mention, I like the staircase. It's quite fancy," Pyrrha said with a chuckle, and Jaune rolled his eyes.

"If I had an eye for design I could make it look much better. Besides, I've always been one for minimalism."

At that, Pyrrha raised one eyebrow. "I didn't think you knew what minimalism was, Jaune."

Jaune feigned hurt. "Since when did you and Weiss switch bodies?"

Pyrrha reached over and smacked him on the shoulder. "Don't give me a reason to spar with you, Jaune. Yang and I regularly go at it, and I haven't lost yet."

Jaune nodded sagely. "If Yang were here, she'd make a joke about the two of you going at it. I won't, or course, but it did cross my mind."

Pyrrha smacked him again.

* * *

Jaune had to admit, it was nice being home. And there was no doubt anymore, Beacon was his home. Hell, his life before getting the System seemed to be so long ago now.

The cafeteria wasn't all that busy, and their typical table had been left empty, thankfully, and as Jaune and Pyrrha set about getting breakfast organised for themselves and the other partnership of AWBN, said partnership walked in.

Or, well, stumbled in, exhaustion written into their faces. Morning people Blake and Weiss were not.

"Morning, you two. How'd you sleep?" Jaune asked.

Blake shook her hand in a so-so motion, and Weiss straight up ignored his question, reaching out and taking the cup of coffee in his hand and beginning to drink it.

Jaune, thankfully, had been prepared for that, and it was Weiss's coffee in the first place, so it was of no loss to him.

So, any ideas as to what we do with ourselves today?" Jaune asked his team. "We've got nothing but time until they reinstate classes."

Weiss, now at least somewhat personable, replied tersely. "If it ends up being another foodfight I will stab you. Repeatedly."

Jaune held up his hands placatingly. "I had nothing to do with the first one."

"Well, you've got your meeting with Ozpin, and I was planning on heading into Vale, I have to restock my book supply," Blake pointed out.

Jaune's hand strayed to the back of his head. "Yeah, I'm not sure if I'm looking forward to that."

Pyrrha looked at Jaune from her pancake, halfway through cutting it into bite-size pieces. "Why is that?"

Jaune shrugged. "He and I keep throwing each other through windows."

Pyrrha's mouth opened, before promptly closing.

Weiss was now much, much more personable. "The headmaster did as to see you at your earliest convenience, Jaune. I suggest you go as soon as you finish breakfast. I'll be in our dorm today, revising for our upcoming lessons, and keeping an eye out for RRYN's arrival."

Jaune quickly downed his glass of orange juice and stood up. "Yeah, I'll head there now. I might drop into Vale later today, too, we'll see. I'll see you guys soon!"

With that, Jaune half-walked half-jogged out of the cafeteria, a much braver face on than he felt.

All he could hope for was that Ozpin didn't try to kill him. Or Goodwitch. Or Ironwood.

Jaune sighed.

* * *

 **The finale, thankfully. I'm as glad to be done with it as you all are to be reading it, I'm sure. Before I jump quickly into reviews, I should point out that Systema now has a public version of the spreadsheet, with both Jaune's skills and stats on it.**

 **tinyurl SystemaStats**

 **Go check it out, it'll be kept as up to date as possible!**

 **Guest: Pretty much one of the few people I'm aware of that figured out where I 'borrowed' the name Shai' Hulud from, so props. Haven't actually read it myself, it's on my list.**

 **dirtrevor: Another thing Jaune needs to do. I should make him a to-do list. And you are right, his team do rely on him, but that's partially because it's usually his fault.**

 **Guest: Telekinesis is actually a pretty good cover, and that may be what I decide to go with. It really depends on whether or not I put aside the idea of Jaune fighting with his Bound Souls. And you are right, that'd blow the whole thing if he instantly healed. I wonder if I thought of that ahead of time?**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: Cheers, that actually means a pretty big thing to hear. I've kind of been tossing the idea of turning the System into an actual game at some point, maybe when I finish Systema, but to hear that it works out like you prepare, that makes me feel like I've done the right thing. Glad you enjoy!**

 **lordrednight: Aww, thanks! Aura Constructs are an interesting idea, though I'd be more likely to make them Mana Constructs and shape them around a Conjuration-type skill. They are really good ideas, though!**

 **jedimasterb10: First Terry, now Perry, it seems our -erry named Faunus just aren't having the best luck these past few days.**

 **drannakka: That makes sense, I guess. Though that would just be under Aerokinesis, whenever that gets invented. Have you seen Legend of Korra? That shit's painful.**

 **DuplicateUserName: It is a good idea, and you are right, I don't focus too much on the whole reality-shaping concept. I could, sure, but the idea of making skills is usually balanced around figuring out a way to make them. Understanding how to reshape reality is a little more difficult than understanding the result, and that's a good way of maintaining a creative-balance. Otherwise, well, I'm sure you can figure out a way to accidentally reverse the time stream or something. Guns, though. Very unsubtle wink.**

 **TalonIbnLaAhad: And the other Dune-related realization. Props to you too. I have to agree with you, too, I reckon Blake is a great character. Shame she is so underused in a lot of fics because writers dislike the way she was written in canon. She, and all the characters, have so much potential.**

 **razmire: Imagine peeling a potato, except the potato is a face.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: If only Aros had been an influence on me. Maybe I'd be funny. Though Jaune and comedic injuries go together like two things that go together really well. Injure is pretty unique, but Magnus Fall Control? Jesus fucking christ. That's some A grade physics right there. It would also look dumb as fucking hell as the Jauneocopter flys overhead. Mana Jet is an interesting one, and I doubt it'd end up being used, considering how underused a lot of his spells are at the moment, Magnetic Spit would just be an Infused variant of Spit, so it wouldn't need it's own skill, though the idea is cool as hell, and Classic Mode just makes me wanna play some classic games. I might play some Castlevania tomorrow, haven't played that one before.**

 **Zathol: What could have been. And Blake with a bell collar just makes me wanna write a vaguely racist one-shot.**

 **Kane: Pure oxygen, now there's a firework I can get behind.**

 **Tsu no mumei: You've seen through my various poor-quality illusions. Oh, the humanity. Yeah, you've got me, that is one of the uses of Soul Orbs. Well, close enough anyway. And, you are right. With the whole en-masse gathering of Stat points, that's pretty much inevitable. Jaune's got some leeway with his stats, and he has to start using them, or he's going to find himself outclassed pretty soon.**

 **4everfictional: I'm glad you're enjoying so far!**

 **TooLateToLogin: A Boss Teaser, of a sort. A few games do that, as far as I can remember, like Destiny, or... I've realised I don't remember many games with bosses. Metal Gear Solid?**

 **And that about does it for this week, I have a twitter fat_flying and a Pat reon under AFatFlyingWhale, check 'em out if you want, and, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	33. A Complete Lack of Defenestration

**This chapter was surprisingly hard to write, and I have no idea why. I quite literally wrote for over twelve hours today.**

 **Thanks to Justas Kondrusevicius for supporting me this month! I really appreciate it!**

* * *

Ozpin and Ironwood struck imposing figures, standing at the window. The two men gazed out over Vale and it's accompanying armada, courtesy of Atlas.

The elevator dinged, signalling the approach of the third person required for this meeting.

Goodwitch let him in, opening the door to the office as the two most important men currently residing in Vale turned to face him.

"Mr Arc. Glad you could make it," Ozpin greeted with a courteous nod, and Jaune nodded in greeting.

"Mr Arc. We didn't get all that much time to speak before, but I am glad we have more time to speak now. Shall we get started, Oz?" Ironwood said, taking a stance to the side of the headmaster's desk.

Ozpin nodded as he took his seat behind the desk. "Please, take a seat Jaune."

Jaune did so, placing himself in the seat.

"I want you, Mr Arc, to tell the General and I exactly what happened on your assignment. Start to finish, leaving nothing out."

Jaune looked between the headmaster and the general. "Everything, sir?"

"Do not worry, Mr Arc. The General is a close friend, someone I trust implicitly, and someone who is aware of the existence of the System, though not of its… current iteration."

Ironwood's eyes widened almost imperceptibly.

Jaune, however, nodded, and began to tell the tale.

* * *

It took a lot of time to tell the whole story, minus some parts that had no bearing on the situation.

Ozpin spent the entire time nodding along, face unchanging, and Ironwood changed from surprise to shock to concern and back again.

"This giant Grimm worm, what did you say it was called?" Ironwood asked, scroll out.

"The Shai-Hulud, sir," Jaune answered. "I've never heard of any kind of Grimm like that before, though."

Ironwood hummed in thought. "I'm not surprised. I haven't, either. Potentially an Ancient Grimm. This may require mobilisation."

His calmness was more than just professionalism. The man truly believed he could kill this thing.

"Now, James, let's not be so hasty. If your men fail to kill it, you will have only succeeded in providing the beast with a target. Considering it's… capabilities, it might be smarter to simply leave it be for now," Ozpin said, standing and turning to the window.

"Oz, you cannot be serious. If we leave that thing alone, it may just decide to do that on its own!"

"Do you have any way of killing it, James? Any way of preventing it from escaping? How about the White Fang? Do we wish to warn them of our knowledge of where they are located?"

Jaune was a little out of his depth.

"And what would you have us do, Ozpin? Wait until it feasts upon Vale?"

Ozpin turned to Jaune. "Mr Arc. Do you believe your team and RRYN would be capable of eliminating this threat?"

Jaune paled. "Us?"

Ironwood was equally enthused. "Ozpin, you must be kidding. They're first year students. I don't care what their semblances are!"

Jaune ignored the roiling fear that threatened to rise from his core, swallowed it down, and prepared to speak.

"Sir, I don't think we could kill it."

Ozpin gave that hidden smile of his, as imperceptible as ever. "Are you certain, Mr Arc?"

Jaune nodded. "It nearly killed us the first time, and it wasn't even trying. I think it was just passing by, really, it probably only gave us a half-hearted try."

"See, Ozpin! We can't let this thing do as it wills, it must be eliminated!" Ironwood exclaimed, gesturing out the window. "It may take a few weeks to mobilize a strike-force capable and specialized enough to deal with it, but it's better than sending your students in to die!"

Ozpin nodded. "I'm afraid I didn't quite understand the true threat this Shai-Hulud posed. If it is as fearsome as you say, Mr Arc, I would still ask your team and Ms Rose's team to accompany the General's strike-force into combat, as ancillary support. I doubt the good General will require it, of course, but your semblance does give us a… unique informational advantage, in a sense."

Jaune nodded. "I can't speak for RRYN, but Team AWBN would be happy to provide support to the Atlesian Military, sir. I just don't think we can take it head-on."

Ozpin nodded once more. "Apologies, Mr Arc. Sometimes I get ahead of myself, is all. I forget that you are still a first year, despite what you are capable of. Now, you may go. The General and I still have much to discuss, but it would only serve to bore you."

Jaune stood quickly and nodded, his polite but rapid farewell briefly acknowledged as he quickly stepped out of the office and straight into the elevator as fast as he could.

As the elevator door closed, Jaune let out a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding.

Well, silver lining, they wouldn't be facing the worm alone.

* * *

Another blow landed on her arms, sending her staggering back, Aura flaring. A gunshot sounded behind her, the whistling of the bullet through the air loud as it passed by her left, striking the Ursa in the head and tearing black flesh from white bone.

Yang had already moved on as the corpse of the Ursa, her fist impacting against a Beowolf with enough power to separate it from its own limbs. Somehow. Yang wasn't paying it all that much attention.

Instead, she was swivelling around, keeping a wary eye out for anymore of the monsters.

The Grimm had, thankfully, thinned out as they'd closed in on Vale, but, evidently, there were still some lingering.

Less so, now, as Nora quite literally flattened a Beowolf with her hammer, but still, they'd been delayed.

Delayed enough that it had taken them just under a week and a half just to be able to see Vale's city borders.

They were less than an hour away from Beacon now, though, and Yang was glad for that. It had been too long since she'd had a proper bed, and her hair was a proper mess.

"Yang, we're clear!" Ruby called out from her vantage point in one of the trees, dropping down.

Yang gave her sister a thumbs-up, Ember Celica retracting into their smaller form.

Nora and Ren stepped up to their partners, and Ruby initiated their typical after-fight rundown.

"Are we all good, guys?" RRYN's leader asked, keeping a wary eye on their surroundings.

"I believe so," Ren answered, holstering StormFlower, the weapons disappearing into his sleeves as if it was magic.

"I know I've said this a lot, but it's times like this that I wish Jaune was here. Those Lien drops, I miss 'em," Yang said, staring at the rapidly disintegrating corpses of their fallen foes.

Nora, surprisingly subdued, said nothing. That worried Ruby, but she didn't have time to dedicate to figuring out what was wrong. They could do that when they made it back to Beacon.

"We're really close, guys! Let's get going! Who knows, we might still win this!"

* * *

"How did we lose!?" Ruby exclaimed, as she watched Weiss calmly walk towards them.

Weiss's expression was a mix of pride, relief, and something that Ruby couldn't comprehend, though not for a lack of trying.

"You lost because we had a large variety of reasons to move very, very fast," Weiss said. "You should all get some rest, though. We have time to explain everything later."

"Jaune did something again, didn't he?" Yang asked.

Weiss blinked very slowly, almost as if she was considering just jumping off the nearest cliff. "Yes. To be fair, it's not entirely on him, and Blake has a little to do with it, but… yes."

It was at this point that Nora grasped both Ren and Ruby, one in each arm, and hoisted them above her head.

"Wha?" Ruby exclaimed, suddenly off balance.

"We are going to go get pancakes, then we're going to have an actual shower, then we're going to eat more! So decree's the queen!" Nora exclaimed, jogging towards the cafeteria.

Yang quirked an eyebrow, giving Weiss a shrug, and began to follow the rest of her team.

"Yang, I know this isn't your usual role, but try to keep them out of trouble. I've had a long few weeks, I can't keep dealing with the constant shenanigans that everyone seems to inevitably drag me into," Weiss asked, watching Nora carrying a resigned Ren and a struggling Ruby away.

Yang gave a snort of laughter. "What are you talking about, Weiss-cream. All Ren and I do is keep Ruby and Nora in line. We're a team of perfect balance."

At that, Weiss rolled her eyes. "Now that, I doubt."

Yang gave the white-haired heiress a wave as she departed, heading for the cafeteria, just behind her team. "Oh, Weiss, if you see Jaune, tell him he still owes me a fight!"

With that, Yang joined her team, and, in less than five minutes, was once again reminded of the force of nature that was Nora Valkyrie, as she devoured twice as many pancakes as anyone could have possibly thought.

* * *

Sword met xiphos as Jaune darted in, and shield met shield, both he and Pyrrha struggling against the other for dominance.

A force pushed him backwards, and he tried to resist, Pyrrha gritting her teeth as she expelled magnetic force.

It lifted him into the air slightly, and that was it for his struggling, as he suddenly found himself flying backwards.

"Damn it Pyrrha!" Jaune exclaimed as he landed hard, rolling backwards.

Pyrrha panted a laugh out, taking a knee briefly. "That… I've never had anyone struggle that much against my semblance."

Jaune gave Crocea Mors a twirl in his hand as Pyrrha resumed her stance.

This time, Pyrrha began the bout, charging in and ducking under Jaune's preemptive slash, rolling to the side and slashing at his shin.

Jaune barely had enough time to leap backwards, just out of reach, raising his shield in time to block the bullets that Pyrrha sent his way.

The moment his shield lowered, he was doomed. Pyrrha had fired the bullets to block his vision. Her blade met his face with enough speed to knock him over, sending him quite literally into a flip.

As his back hit the concrete, he let out a grunt.

"Good to see that at least one of us is still capable of putting you on your rear."

Jaune clambered to his feet with a helping hand from Pyrrha, and turned to the person who'd approached. "Thanks, Blake. Way to make a man feel like he belongs."

Blake gave her leader a pat on the back. "Toughen up. RRYN's back, Weiss sent me to let you know."

Jaune sheathed Crocea Mors. "Is there any particular reason why Weiss didn't just come and let me know?"

Blake shrugged. "She's talking with Professor Goodwitch at the moment, though I don't know what about."

Concern crossed Jaune's face, but Pyrrha placed her hand on his back, effectively forcing him out of the training room. "Come on, Jaune, let's go say hi to RRYN. Weiss is fine."

"Yeah, but…" Jaune began.

Pyrrha shook her head. "Weiss is fine. Stop worrying, let's go make sure our friends are fine."

Jaune allowed himself to be lead out of the training room, Blake tagging along as the three walked through the hallways of Beacon.

It didn't take them long to find RRYN. All they had to do was listen for the sounds of tired, emotionally drained Hunters-in-training devouring their second proper meal in some time.

"Hello! How was the assignment?" Pyrrha greeted, stepping through into the cafeteria.

Ruby threw her hands up in the air. "Pyrrha! Blake! Jaune!"

The rest of RRYN waved their greetings, and the three present members of AWBN sat in their typical seats.

"The assignment was just a massive grind. All we did was walk for like, nearly two weeks. You guys beat us!" Ruby exclaimed, as she dug into a plate of pancakes.

Jaune scratched at the back of his head, as usual. "Well, we took a few shortcuts. It wasn't exactly a fair competition, we were probably dropped closer to Vale."

"There you go again, trying to make it sound like it wasn't our fault," Yang said. "We lost. That's fine, you don't need to make out like we're still equals."

"Oh. Sorry, I didn't mean to make it sound condescending, I just meant we really did take some shortcuts," Jaune explained. "I got some new skills, and one of them allows me to manipulate earth. We kind of tunnelled through half of Sanus, pretty much."

"Woah! That's so cool!" Ruby exclaimed, practically bouncing up and down in her seat. "What else!"

Jaune shrugged. "A few skills, some I haven't had time to show off yet. What about you guys, anything interesting happen?"

"Besides Nora deciding that we always need to make sure we bring twice as much pancake mix as we think we'll need, and a new speed-eating record, not much. Mostly just walking through forests and killing Ursa and Beowolves. We fought a Nevermore, that was a highlight," Ruby said, counting the events off on her fingers. "So, what, you guys just dug the entire way back?"

Pyrrha laughed at that. "If only it were so easy."

"Yeah, we kind of took a 'shortcut' through Mountain Glenn. Not sure if we regret that or not," Jaune explained, when the three of them received four confused looks.

"Wait, isn't that the ruined expansion of Vale?" Yang asked, leaning forwards.

"Did you guys fight zombies!?" Nora asked, also leaning forwards.

"Nora, zombies don't exist," Ren reminded.

"That you know of!" Nora said, turning to her lifelong friend.

"Yeah, it is," Jaune said, in response to Yang's question. "It turns out, the entirety of Mountain Glenn is what's known as a raid zone."

"A raid zone? What's a raid zone?" Ruby asked, intrigued.

"It's like a super-hard area. Basically, the Grimm there are much tougher, but have better rewards," Jaune explained. "The place is really, really difficult."

"Don't raid zones usually have a raid boss?" Yang asked, eyebrow quirked.

Jaune nodded. "Yeah. It's… a gigantic Grimm worm."

All four of RRYN sat back, eyes wide.

"Gigantic as in…" Ren began.

"It's difficult to give a relative size, considering we only really saw it either really, really close or from a distance that it was covering quickly. We didn't exactly see it sitting still, or anything. Bigger than anything we've ever faced, Grimm or otherwise, though," Jaune said.

"Damn," Yang said, whistling. "Did you kill it?"

"What?! Gods no, I don't think I could kill anything like that for years! Not without help!" Jaune exclaimed.

"So, what. You just left it in Mountain Glenn?" Ruby asked.

"Not quite. The Shai-Hulud wasn't the only thing there. We found a White Fang hideout," Jaune said.

"Oh," Ruby replied.

"And, we caught a White Fang member," Blake added in. "He's in Atlesian custody right now."

"Ah," Ruby said.

Jaune nodded along. "And now we've been recruited by the Atlesian Military to kill the giant worm, along with you guys, if you're willing. With their help, of course."

"Huh," Yang said this time, though she was echoed by her sister.

"Yeah, General Ironwood said it would take a few weeks to prepare a strike team, but we'll be serving as support. Keeping the worm above the ground, hitting it where we can, that sort of thing."

Ruby listened carefully. She nodded along, paying complete attention. "Well, you've got our help. I don't think any of us object, at least." She looked around at her team, receiving three head-shakes.

Jaune's shoulders relaxed. "Oh, great. I was worried we'd be going in without you guys."

Yang laughed at that. "Who else would be able to make us a heap of Lien by just killing Grimm!"

"Is that all I am to you? An income?" Jaune asked, mock-hurt.

Yang leaned forwards, standing far enough to make Jaune suddenly feel a hell of a lot more awkward. "If you want, you can be my sugar daddy."

Jaune paled faster than a bleeding anemic.

"Nope!" Ruby cried out, grabbing her sister by the collar and heaving her backwards. "Nope!"

Yang stuck her tongue out at her sister. "Spoilsport."

"So, now what?" Ruby asked. "We just wait until the General asks us to go?"

Jaune shrugged. "I don't know?"

They received their answer rather quickly as Weiss burst into the cafeteria, a panicked look on her face.

"Weiss? What's wrong?" Jaune asked, standing up.

Weiss pushed right past him, stepping up to Yang.

"I need your help to organise the Beacon Dance."

Suddenly, Jaune was certain he needed to spend all of his stat points on Charisma.

* * *

Weiss had practically dragged Yang off, not that the blonde was complaining all that much, and the rest of AWBN and RRYN had broken off to do various things. Ren and Nora had claimed to be planning an anti-zombie defense system, whatever that entailed, Ruby had to go speak with Professor Goodwitch to notify her that they had finished their assignment, though Jaune suspected the woman was quite aware, Pyrrha had decided to tag along with Weiss and Yang, to offer her experience, and Blake had slinked off, most likely to the library.

This, unsurprisingly, left Jaune alone.

It was a state of being he was somewhat used to by now, and a time where he could make the absolute most use of his semblance, without having to worry about explaining what was happening, or worrying about potential collateral damage.

It also gave him time to think.

A lot of time to think.

He was, as expected, down at his little clearing, looking around for any Grimm that felt like trying their luck.

None seemed to be prying for his attention, but that was fine with him.

Jaune had seventy-five stat points waiting to be used. That was a lot of points. The problem was, what did he spend them on, or did he even spend them? Was it worth saving them?

Now that he though about it, maybe he should spend the day organising everything. His inventory was probably still a mess too, now that he thought about it.

Now that he thought about it, didn't he still have some strange box in his inventory.

It took him less than five seconds to bring up his inventory screen and grab that box out, checking it over.

The 'Small Mysterious Lockbox', as it was called, seemed to be about the same size as a shoebox, perhaps slightly smaller, and it had been sitting in his inventory for over a month at least.

After about fifteen more seconds of _Lockpicking_ , Jaune managed to crack it open.

100 XP for _Lockpicking_ , and something else was the result of opening the box.

"Uh…" Jaune said to himself, staring into the box.

Another skill book. It seemed as if Jaune was swimming in them now. A quick _Observe_ told him exactly what it was.

"'Ancient Chemistry'?" Jaune said aloud, reading the title.

Well, exactly what it's name was. What the skill it would give was was a mystery to Jaune, but at least he knew it would be somewhat related to chemistry.

He opened it, and this time, he didn't even bother to read anything, just skipping page after page until he reached the blank set. A quick press of the 'learn' button, and Jaune had a new skill.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Crafting (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of crafting items, of which quality is dependent on Crafting skill level. Crafting has multiple sub-skills under the list which can be learnt. Quality, quantity and time spent are all improved upon leveling Crafting._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

 **[Crafting Subskill; Alchemy Learned!]**

' _That's interesting. Only thing is, how do I do Alchemy?'_ Jaune thought, before noticing a tab under the crafting skill.

He tapped it, and up came a menu, floating in the air in front of him.

A lot of greyed out, untappable options appeared in front of him, and Jaune sighed. ' _More experimentation required, I guess.'_

The Alchemy tab, the only option not greyed out, was quickly tapped, Jaune's finger meeting non-existent resistance.

More greyed out options greeted him, but this time he was told he needed access to a chemistry set to perform any actions.

Another thing he couldn't do. At least Jaune knew where to find a chemistry set. Professor Peach's classroom had a few he could use.

And he had that Stamina Potion, so he could try and replicate it. Or, at the very least, learn about how Alchemy worked.

Now, though, it was out of the question, so he put it aside, mentally adding it to his to-do list.

Man, he had a lot of work ahead of him.

And a lot of time to kill, too. That hadn't taken nearly as long as he'd thought, though that was mostly because he'd put _Crafting_ aside.

 _Lockpicking_ had leveled to 3 from the lockbox, but that was one of those skills that really wasn't all that important in a fight, and Jaune knew there was a massive fight coming up.

What was it that Ruby had said earlier? A massive grind?

' _I guess that's what awaits me,'_ Jaune thought, as he paced around the clearing, deep in thought.

He needed to prepare. That meant gear, that meant training skills, it meant making sure that he and his team were prepared. It also meant making sure that RRYN were prepared as well, but he knew that Ruby would be on top of that.

So, for now, Jaune decided to set up a training regime.

In the distance, high above Jaune, red eyes watched his every move.

* * *

 **Slightly shorter this week, but for good reason, as nothing significant is actually happening. We get Dance prep next week, though, and depending on how that chapter goes, maybe even the dance itself!**

 **Anyway, onto reviews, and this week's we've got a big one, so I'll do that one last, just to save the rest of you, who may not care, from suffering :P**

 **dirtrevor: Absolutely I do. Multiple element infusion is planned, though not quite how you may expect, and Mana constructs, or something similar, have technically already been discovered. Technically.**

 **commandosquirrel: Currently, neither, though there is a method to improve them, which will be explained/discovered later on.**

 **csad21: Phaseshift was, as I may have mentioned before, a completely randomized drop, so getting it early on, or relatively early on anyway, is going to be a huge boon, and may change the way a lot of upcoming content may be written. It is an expensive skill, however. As for Mindbend, I'm actually still working out the kinks, but it will be a hefty one nonetheless, if it works. Aura Suppression, whilst a perk, is great for stealth, for reasons I am yet to delve into. Just know it works similarly to how it works in LiteralSin's Name of the Game, and is where I got/stole the idea from. Mokuton, which I had to google, is an interesting one, and may exist in the form of Arbomancy, though not for a while. And the staircase is carved into the side of the cliff, not through it, and seeing as Cinder is quite literally walking around Beacon right now, I doubt it matters all that much to her. Glad you like Callisto, too.**

 **drannakka: Soon tm.**

 **BukkakeNoJutsu: As do we all, my strangely-named friend.**

 **lordrednight: Glad someone enjoyed it, ha.**

 **razmire: One day, I will make that summon a reality. Of course, I keep forgetting and instead making fluffy ones. I may be slightly biased. What can I say, I enjoy the floof.**

 **DuplicateUserName: I could change the way the 'Mana' skills work, as you suggest, but it would technically break the way I have all the skills and XP gains work right now. It is entirely possible, and if it reaches a point where I can no longer maintain every single skill, I will most likely consolidate skills.**

 **jedimasterb10: So many somewhat-dangerous adults around it's no wonder all of them grow up to be such dangerous individuals. Well, almost all of them. If you haven't yet, go see Captain Marvel. It was worth it.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Oh no, if we go down the time route we start messing with things that are not to be messed with. I'll end up turning Systema into Relic Of The Future, or one of Aros's pieces, of which I can never remember the name or acronym of. Gravity has so many applications, I doubt I'll even scratch the surface.**

 **Zathol: Callisto almost seems too chill for that. I feel like she would get one of those deadpan reactions, followed up by a shout at Jaune. Secret lair, brilliant idea, already stolen by Ozpin. Damn. And, technically Perry isn't in jail yet. Yet being the operative word. Tinfoil hats, or as we aussies call it, Alfoil, cause it isn't made out of tin.**

 **Slenderbrine: You son of a bitch, you stole my line.**

 **Adro-Sama: Da, he stronk like bear. Cyka Blyat. Vodka. Cheeki Breeki.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Another idea you've guessed right. We may need to make sure you haven't accidentally tuned into my brain, or something. Shh, though, it's a secret.**

 **armentho: You know, I haven't really thought about the exact m/s the gravity effect has. Those are excellent ideas, though.**

 **Ecchi-kami: Techincally he doesn't absorb the souls from people or things, but the world of Remnant itself. Though, if he does get a Soul Drain skill, wink wink, I'd expect something to happen.**

 **Kane: I apologise for no puns, Yang was getting over a near two week assignment. She did tease, though, so a one-hundred percent increase in mockingly flirtatious Yang. I see no downsides.**

 **Now, for the review literally like five people have been waiting for...**

 **typhonyx: Hoo boy, here we go! Lemme just start this off by saying that you are right. A lot of the things you've mentioned are things that need to be fixed, stuff I am aware of. Things like poison punches, stat increases simply ceasing to exist and the projectile amounts, for example, are all things I shouldn't have forgotten, but did. I am, however, only one person, with a lot on my plate. This is a massive endeavor, and if it wasn't for all of you guys helping me out I have no doubt I would've forgotten most of the stuff I mention. The reason I decided to make a publicly available spreadsheet was so I didn't inflate the story any more than I already do, and I feel like if a page was suddenly covered with thirty-something notifications, all of which are roughly four lines long, it would break up any semblance of flow the story had, and would almost seem like a slog to read through. I will try my best to consolidate the notifications without having them appear as System notifications, though, as I did with this chapter in regards to Lockpicking, and as for the mattress-making thing you pointed out, that was supposed to be where I introduced crafting, but decided against it. That should have been changed, or at least made a little different, but I must've forgotten. In fact, I could've sworn I removed that part entirely, but it must've slipped through my editing. I am aware of the issues without making Jaune's HP known more often, too, that's something that I'm working on right now behind-the-scenes, working on a limb-to-HP system so as to make sure that whenever Jaune is injured, you can see and understand just how close to death he is. It is, however, quite a complicated thing to work on. Thank you for pointing all of this out, I really appreciate the time you went to to bring all of this to light, and I will do my damnedest to fix as many of these issues as I can. Glad you still enjoy it, though!**

 **And that about does it for reviews this week, and hoo boy has it been a long one. I have a twitter fat_flying and a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale, so if you want to talk or support me, go check 'em out, and, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	34. Hijinks of the Floofiest Kind

**I spent most of this week replaying MGSV:TPP again. Still a great game. Long game, too. Got the chapter done, and on time, though!**

 **Thanks for supporting me this month,** **Justas Kondrusevicius. I appreciate it!**

* * *

Training was never anything but a relaxing affair, at least mentally. Physically it was demanding, that was required for it to be classified as training, he supposed, but it had that kind of zone-out and smack things kind of vibe to it.

Currently, what Jaune was doing was not training, in the typical, more classical sense.

What it was that he was doing was creating a full skill training plan, a regime to stick to that would maximise his XP efficiency, something he could run constantly in a loop.

Unfortunately, he barely got any XP from training combat-skills outside of combat, it was, as it turned out, extremely inefficient to fire a _Mana Bolt_ at 1 XP per cast, because it turned out that he needed a little over forty-two thousand casts in order to level once.

Non-combat skills seemed to gain XP somewhat faster, thankfully, and even ones that would have combat applications, but were less reliant on combat for usage, seemed to gain XP faster.

For example, a single Regular Soul Orb gave five-thousand XP on creation, and seemed to increase XP gain as _Soul Harvest_ leveled, and increase even more between Minor and Regular Soul Orbs.

It also only took one hand to constantly cast, had no cost that he was aware of, and was useful for a number of things, namely his Bound Souls.

So, that effectively made it a training priority, and eliminated his left hand from doing anything for the majority of his training lap.

Two free legs and a free right hand meant that he could effectively train _Sprint_ and _Jump_ , rapidly bounding around the clearing with both speed and height, looking to all the world as if he was a madman learning he had superpowers.

So, that eliminated his legs for the time being. Surprisingly, _Terrakinesis_ appeared to be a combat skill, in the same terms as many of his spells, so simply molding terrain seemed to give less XP than killing a Grimm with it, so that ruled that out, but he still had a list to go through.

So, in Jaune's right hand, he twirled his improvised lockpick between his fingers.

Each lap was definitely wearing him down, and he could feel the physical strain building up.

It was almost strange how the physical strain had almost no effect on his SP, though. It was a weird quirk he'd noticed, something that seemed almost strange, or stranger than normal, at least.

It was pretty much because he wasn't doing anything that was so physically straining that he would run out of stamina, though. His SP regen was high enough that he didn't even notice the impact on the bar, and if he stopped, he had no doubt the mild ache he could feel would cease.

' _Another hour or so of this, then I'll get some experimentation done, then I'll head back up, try my hand at the new Crafting skill,'_ Jaune thought, mid- _Jump_. ' _Who knows, I might even be able to keep that threat I made about Weiss and the SDC.'_

Jaune doubted it. Considering he expected that most of the ingredients that went into making a potion would only drop due to his semblance, there was a pretty hefty chance that it wouldn't be anywhere near as scalable as a proper business. Maybe he could sell excess potions that he didn't need, or hand them to those who needed them more, but as it was, if all he could make were Stamina Potions, he didn't see much use for them.

' _Of course, Crafting has more potential than just Alchemy. According to that menu, there's a lot of things.'_

More laps passed Jaune by, not that he even noticed.

' _Maybe Ruby is right, I could use a ranged weapon that doesn't rely on the System. Not a sniper rifle or a shotgun, those are a little too far on either side when it comes to range. A rifle, or a pistol?'_

Jaune decided that he would put that one off until he got the option to have a proper discussion with Ruby in regards to a firearm.

Jaune snapped out of his thoughts as his scroll beeped, a new message indication causing him to nearly fumble his makeshift lockpick, dropping and then subsequently catching it. He inventoried it, and withdrew his scroll.

Not only had he received a message, he also noticed he been training for nearly an hour already. Time passed way too fast, but those thoughts disappeared as he read the new message.

'Jaune, I need your help with something important. Can we meet in my dorm?'

The message, from Ruby, gave Jaune a reason to be concerned. Knowing Ruby, it was probably nothing, despite her emphasis on how important it was, but it was the simplicity of the message that made him worry.

So, Jaune headed back up his new staircase, headed back for Beacon's campus.

And he'd been so close to maybe getting another Stat Point, too. Next time.

* * *

"Ruby, when you said important, this was not what I thought you meant."

Ruby looked at Jaune, almost scandalized. "How is this not important? How am I supposed to hide this from Professor Goodwitch?!"

"Arf!" The dog that was currently sat in Jaune's lap added to the discussion.

"Yes, thank you for your input, Zwei, helpful," Jaune snarked.

"Arf!"

Jaune looked up at Ruby, ignoring the argument that the corgi had decided to use as his main defense. "Ruby, why did you think I was the best choice for hiding a dog?"

"You hide a heap of animals!"

A sigh escaped his lips as he brought Cadejo out into the dorm room, the wolf immediately latching his attention to the much smaller canine in the room, and quirked his head to the side.

"Ruby, I'm not hiding animals. I'm summoning the converted souls of enemies I've killed and then revived through ritualistic means. I think."

"You think?"

Jaune threw his hands in the air. "It isn't exactly a precise science!"

Ruby shrugged, unaffected by his misery. "Eh. Can you hide Zwei?"

"Why haven't you asked your co-conspirator Yang, or your co-conspirator Nora? Or even Ren? Actually, now that I think about it, we're the responsible team. That's depressing."

"I can't ask Yang because she's busy with Weiss, who I definitely don't want to know I'm breaking a bunch of rules, and I can't ask Nora because she's more likely to parade Zwei through the halls, and I can't ask Ren because if I ask Ren Nora will be super-duper jealous and swoop in anyways!"

Jaune opened his mouth to disagree, but found that no argument came forth. "Okay, fair enough. Pyrrha or Blake?"

"Pyrrha's busy with Yang and Weiss, same reason as before, and Blake… well…"

Jaune nodded. "Blake and dogs do not mix, not without a lot of time for her to get comfortable. Wait, why do you already have all those reasons prepared? Was I your last choice?"

Ruby shook her head violently. "No!"

Jaune quirked an eyebrow.

"Weiss is my last choice. You're second last!"

The innocence made the insult all the more effective. "Thanks, Ruby. You really know how to make me feel useful."

Ruby ignored his complaints. "Can't you just make Zwei invisible?"

"Make him… invisible? How would I even go about doing that?"

Ruby's dead-stare barely fazed him, as Cadejo stepped closer to Zwei, giving the much smaller dog a tentative sniff, which was returned in kind.

"I don't know, Jaune, can you make things invisible?" Ruby asked.

"Not that I know of, at least at the moment," Jaune answered.

Ruby's pout was legendary. "Now what do I do?"

Jaune shrugged once more. "Just keep Zwei in your dorm. I doubt Professor Goodwitch will have a serious problem with him, considering some of the other things we've done. I'm pretty sure she may think that taking care of Zwei will teach us responsibility, or something."

Ruby sighed. "I guess. I was kind of hoping you could make Zwei invisible. That way, when he inevitably escapes the room, he wouldn't be hunted down by the Professor."

"Escapes the room?" Jaune asked, looking to where Zwei was.

Zwei was not there. Neither was Cadejo.

"Oh no."

* * *

Jaune had most definitely expected this to be the way his afternoon went.

"Zwei! Cadejo!" Jaune called, wandering the campus.

Ruby, next to him, echoed his calling, scanning the terrain around.

"Why is Cadejo not listening to you?" She asked, as if the idea had suddenly come to mind.

Jaune didn't know. "Maybe Zwei secretly has a semblance that allows him to mind control other canines?"

Ruby accepted this. "I mean, it would make sense. This isn't the first time he's convinced another dog to help set him free. I get why he likes to roam, but I don't get how he manages to open the doors! He's like, six inches tall!"

"Who's six inches tall?" Pyrrha asked, noticing the two passing by.

"Oh, hey Pyrrha. You aren't with Weiss right now, or Yang, are you?" Ruby asked, darting over to the much taller redhead.

Pyrrha shook her head. "No, I gave all the help I could, but Weiss has far more experience with this kind of event, and Yang is making sure it doesn't end up as an Atlesian, um, 'bore-fest', I believe were her words. Why?"

"Zwei's escaped!" Ruby quickly said, in her attempt to catch Pyrrha up to speed.

"Ruby now has a dog with a talent for escaping from rooms. He also seems to have convinced Cadejo to help. We're searching the campus for them now," Jaune clarified.

"Convinced Cadejo?" Pyrrha asked, confused. "I didn't think that was possible."

Jaune shrugged another time. "In combat, I doubt any of my summons would risk it, but I think Cadejo is just having some fun. Not the biggest deal, I guess, the problem is if he gets seen, and some opportunistic Hunter decides to do the world what they think is a good deed."

It was at this point that a loud grunt, followed by a series of 'arfs' in varying pitch, sounded out over the courtyard they had neared.

"Oh. That's probably not good," Jaune remarked, surprisingly calm.

Cardin Winchester stood, fists clenched, panting heavily, as Cadejo paced back and forth in front of him, a cocky glint in his eyes. Atop Cadejo, balanced carefree atop the wolf's back, stood Zwei, the tiny corgi preparing for another 'arf'.

Ruby was quick to disappear in a cloud of rose petals, appearing next to Cadejo and scooping Zwei up into her arms, the dog's mood changing in an instant, tail wagging.

"Naughty, Zwei! Stop running away!" Ruby scolded, and somehow the corgi seemed like the lesser of two puppies.

"Cadejo, sit," Jaune called out, approaching, Pyrrha following closely. Cadejo did as he was ordered, planting his rear on the ground, that cocky glint not leaving his eyes. "Troublemaker. You did this on purpose."

Cadejo's tail wagged back and forth in response to Jaune's accusation.

"What the fuck is going on?" Cardin asked breathlessly. "That's a gods-damned Grimm, what are you doing?!"

Jaune ignored Cardin, running his hand through the fur on the top of Cadejo's head, giving the wolf a scratch behind the ears.

"You… you bastard! Answer me!" Cardin shouted, grabbing Jaune's shoulder.

Cadejo moved in an instant, leaping at Cardin, who flinched backwards, landing on his rear.

"Down, Cadejo," Jaune ordered. The wolf backed up, sitting down next to Pyrrha, who absentmindedly stroked his head.

Jaune only had a few seconds to come up with an explanation, and he latched onto the first one that came to mind, as Cardin climbed to his feet, somewhat shakily.

"It's my semblance, Cardin."

Cardin's mouth opened and closed like a gaping fish.

"You train Grimm? That's your semblance?" The teen asked, almost repulsed.

"No, you idiot. I summon creatures like this," Jaune explained, noticing an uptick in XP in _Deceitful Speech_.

Cardin glared harshly at Cadejo, who was too busy enjoying the head scratches to pay the boy any attention.

"Yeah? Well, if I had my weapon, it wouldn't be so strong. Fuckin' bitch."

No one was around to laugh at the poor attempt at an insult. "Cardin, you know that he can't understand you. You're trying to insult a dog."

Cardin looked like he didn't know what to make of that.

"Yeah, you're right. It's just a mutt. Not even a threat."

Jaune quirked an eyebrow. "You're really trying to sell that angle. Any particular reason why?"

Cardin responded by flipping Jaune off. "Get outta my way, Jauney!"

Jaune shrugged. "I don't know, Cardin, I think Cadejo scared you."

Cardin stopped trying to leave, scoffing. "Me, scared? Bitch please, I don't get scared."

Jaune smiled calmly. "Then turn around."

To his credit, Cardin's face didn't lose any color. "Sure thing, I was just leaving anyway. Don't want to spend any more time with you freaks anyways."

And, as Cardin turned around, he was suddenly face to face with a very large bear.

It was at this point that all the color drained from his face, and Cardin Winchester hit the ground, having fainted.

"Not scared. Right."

* * *

"You have a bear!?" Ruby exclaimed, after they'd vacated Cardin's final resting place. None of them wanted to be anywhere near the teen when he woke, if only to avoid any more potential annoyances in the form of his inflammatory comments.

"Yeah. Her name's Callisto," Jaune replied, looking up at where Ruby rode Callisto, balanced ever so precariously atop her furry body.

Callisto, unsurprisingly, didn't notice the weight a single bit. Not to say that Ruby weighed all that much. Actually, come to think of it, Ruby probably weighed less than her weapon.

"Why are all your summons so adorable!?" Ruby exclaimed, somehow legitimately expecting an answer.

"I… don't know?"

Zwei, being carried in a hug by Pyrrha, released an objectionable 'arf' at Ruby. The red-cloaked girl, obviously able to speak corgi, waved off the dog's concern.

"Aww, Zwei, you know you're the best doggy!"

Pyrrha and Jaune shared an amused glance.

"So, Jaune, this is your public semblance now, I suppose?" Pyrrha asked, gesturing her head towards Callisto and Cadejo.

Jaune shrugged. "I guess so. I mean, if Cardin decides to spread it to the student body, anyway. And other people probably saw Cadejo, and I have no doubt that at least one person's spotted Callisto, she stands out a little."

"That's an understatement," Pyrrha remarked with a laugh.

"Yeah, I think the bear is truly out of the bag now, Jaune," Ruby said, her nonchalant delivery betrayed by her beaming grin she was struggling to hide.

Jaune just glared at her. "Your sister is a bad influence on you."

Ruby shrugged. "Not that that's anything new. I've had to live with her for nearly sixteen years."

Pyrrha laughed again. "Frankly, it's impressive you've made it this far without getting into trouble."

Ruby shook her head. "Nah, I get into trouble all the time. I just look so innocent that people wave it off."

The brutality of her honesty was refreshing. "Oh? Do tell, troublemaker," Jaune joked.

"I mean, I've gone against the rules so many times to fight bad guys it seems to be my sole character trait. I've done it more than Blake has!"

That gave Jaune and Pyrrha pause. "Wait, more than Blake?" Jaune asked.

Ruby shrugged again. "Mmm, probably. I don't think either of us keep count."

Pyrrha quirked an eyebrow. "Maybe we should have Yang perform an intervention?"

"Yang trashed a bar less than an hour after I was accepted into Beacon early."

Pyrrha looked as if she wasn't prepared to hear that.

"Ruby, you can't just lay that on us without context. Even I haven't trashed a bar!" Jaune exclaimed.

"Ruby Rose, have you been leaking my secrets?!"

Ruby vanished into a cloud of rose petals, giving Callisto something to snack on, for… some reason. The bear summon seemed interested in the red petals, giving one a half-hearted chew.

"Damn, she ran. I should've been prepared for that. Hey Jaune, hey Pyr. Hey… giant bear," Yang greeted, faltering as she finally noticed Callisto.

"Yang, Callisto. Callisto, Yang," Jaune introduced, gesturing between the two.

Callisto gave a very non-committal bear-roar.

"Somehow, I'm still surprised. Every time. Why are you walking around with your summons in public? And, Pyrrha, why are you holding… Zwei?" Yang seemed as if every single piece of information was at odds with her current understanding of reality.

'Arf!' Zwei replied, as if this answered anything.

It did not, as far as Yang was concerned.

"It's a long story. Sure, not the longest I've ever had to tell, but still," Jaune said. "Short version is that Ruby lost Zwei, Cadejo helped Zwei escape, and the two went on an adventure. Cardin found out, and I had to come up with a quick excuse. So, now my semblance is publicly known as summoning, I can summon Callisto, and everybody has seen them."

"Jaune, that was quite literally everything that happened, aside from a few extenuating circumstances," Pyrrha remarked quietly. "I would say that both the long and short version were about the same length."

Jaune shrugged. "Semantics. You might want to give Zwei over to Yang, by the way. Unless we need another animal to rile Blake up."

"Yang, what are you…" Weiss asked, stepping out of the hall and into the courtyard out the front where they'd stopped to talk.

"Nope, not explaining it again!" Jaune said loudly. "This one's on you. Either of you."

With that, Jaune left a nonplussed Yang, a confused Weiss and an amused Pyrrha behind, as Cadejo and Callisto kept pace.

He had a chemistry lab to find.

* * *

Thankfully, Professor Peach didn't care one way or another what he did in the chemistry lab, as long as, when he was inevitable caught for creating hard drugs, he said that he had snuck in, instead of getting permission.

Her words.

Professor Peach was always the laxest of teachers, that much was certain.

Jaune was somewhat coherent when it came to listening to her albeit brief safety lesson, and he had the amazing ability to heal injuries, so as he put on his safety glasses, because repeating the eye-melting incident was most definitely not the top of his list of priorities, he got started.

Well, he didn't quite get started. What he did was open his menus, navigate to the Alchemy section, and study it in more detail.

 **[Alchemy]**

 **[Creation]**

 **[Research]**

Two options, one being creation, the other research. Tapping Creation led to a screen with a series of greyed out options, like before, but Research led to something slightly more promising.

One option, though that was to be expected.

 **[Deconstruct 'Regular Potion of Stamina'?]**

 **[Yes/No]**

Jaune tapped yes, hoping to all the gods above and below that this wasn't a stupid idea.

Then again, what else was he going to do with it, drink it? Who knew what it would do to him. It could turn him into a blond, male version of Nora. That was dangerous.

He was so lost in thought he didn't even think about what he was doing, relying entirely on instinct as he withdrew the small bottle from his inventory and poured it into a larger flask, setting it into the chemistry set somehow, and proceeding to perform all sorts of tasks to it.

In his mind, he could not explain what he was doing, other than relying completely on his gut telling him what to do. Or, more accurately, his semblance.

It took a couple minutes, but Jaune was left with various bits of residue and liquid, and what could only described as a terrible smell, something that Jaune had once smelled before.

"Why does it smell like one of Ren's god-awful juices?" He asked himself, intrigued.

The answer came in a burst of information that Jaune received from _Observing_ the residual materials.

"Ingredients comprised of inert Dust powder, alchemic reagent, and… algae?" He spoke aloud, before recognizing the smell. "No, there's no way that Ren was telling the truth. Algae really is good for your energy?"

Ever since that fateful lunch, the first time Pyrrha had to visit the infirmary at Beacon for a reason that was not combat related, Jaune realised that Ren was a dangerous man. He had to be, to have lived with Nora that long, and it was obvious that she was not the only quirky one of the pair.

He'd been right, though, despite Jaune trying to block out that memory due to the trauma. "Aww, now I have to drink that stuff!"

Well, he didn't have to, and his SP regen was much bigger than the rate he consumed it, so right now, he could avoid the agony.

Another notification proceeded to pop up, startling him from his introspection.

 **[New recipes learned!]**

 **[Potion of Stamina learned!]**

 **[Alchemic Reagent learned!]**

Well, those were nice at least. He could replicate the potion, without much trouble, and the ingredient he had no idea about was now listed in his alchemy tab.

As for what alchemic reagent was, he was unsure, but a quick check would alleviate that lack of knowledge.

Dust powder, and… alcohol.

"Well, that's unfortunate. This isn't very specific."

If Jaune wanted to continue learning Alchemy, something he was very willing to put time into, he would have to either brew his own alcohol, or buy some.

Which would be harder, he was unsure.

Then again, he knew Yang, so maybe it wouldn't be so difficult. As for Dust powder, he was the leader of a team that featured Weiss, heiress to the biggest Dust conglomerate on Remnant. That was one thing he wasn't necessarily short on.

And he had plenty of inert Dust from killing Grimm, so that was good. And there was no doubt that Ren had a bunch of algae just taking up room in the shared fridge, to be avoided at all costs.

And maybe he'd use it all, just so Ren could have Stamina Potions. The teen needed all the energy he could get, Jaune supposed. It would get XP for _Crafting_ and make him seem like he wasn't doing it to get rid of the algae.

It might even unlock him some new potions, who knew?

Regardless of all that, it appeared that deconstructing, decanting, whatever it was that Jaune did to the potion to turn it into the residue, had given Jaune only five XP towards his crafting skill. This was, expectedly, fine, as Jaune hadn't expected to gain much from this method anyways.

So, that was today's alchemy lesson was done. Not much else Jaune could do, concerning it, so he turned off whatever he'd left on, and left the room, closing the door behind him.

Someone else could clean the equipment. Beacon had janitors, right?

* * *

"I'm still unsure, ma'am. He's hiding it well."

Professor Aurum turned to face her student, resting her elbows against her desk. "A shame, Emerald. Here I thought you said you would find out more than Torchwick ever could."

Emerald wouldn't meet her eyes. "I'm sorry, ma'am. Either he's incredibly good at Aura manipulation, or he's a genius at hiding it. I was watching him train, down in the Emerald Forest, and all the things he was doing looked like typical, if advanced, Aura manipulation. Nothing I could see looked out of the ordinary, even if it made him look like some kind of Aura prodigy."

Cinder frowned, standing and walking to her window, looking out over the campus. "Then it may be a false alarm, and he may just be able to project his Aura as his semblance. Are you certain, Emerald?"

Emerald waved her hand in the air. "Fifty fifty."

Cinder turned her head to glare at her subordinate, who promptly remembered who she was talking to.

"I mean, there's not way to be certain at the moment. I'll need to watch him longer. I don't think it's his semblance, though, the Aura manipulation. The way he uses it, it makes him seem like he has no idea how an actual semblance works. I think he just figured out Aura manipulation, and is trying his absolute best to master it."

Cinder hummed in thought, watching as various students passed her office by, walking through the courtyard her office looked out onto. "I see. Continue your surveillance, I want to know what his semblance is, and if it is what we are looking for."

Emerald nodded. "And if it is, ma'am?"

"That, Emerald, is something that does not concern you as of this moment... " Cinder began, before trailing off.

"Ma'am?"

"Is that Arc?"

Cinder's question caught Emerald off-guard, and she quickly stepped up to the window, peering out.

Outside, in the courtyard, stood Jaune, accompanied by Ruby Rose, Pyrrha Nikos and what looked to be a large wolf, and a larger bear.

Cinder glanced at Emerald. "Now, with this information in mind, does this change your opinion?"

Emerald stared wide-eyed at Jaune. "I… This makes it much more likely, ma'am. If you give me some more time, I can confirm it."

Cinder agreed. "Make sure you do, Emerald."

* * *

 **Good, solid chapter I feel like, this one came easy in comparison to last week's, which is somewhat surprising. Some reasonably important stuff happens, things occur, all that good stuff.**

 **From now on, I'm going to be putting Jaune's current stats at the bottom of every chapter, after the AN, simply for the people who want to know but don't want to check the spreadsheet themselves, I figure that's the best compromise I can make. I don't put them in the middle of chapters just so they don't break up the flow, because they do stand out a considerable amount.**

 **Now, reviews!**

 **DuplicateUserName: Technically the firepower on an Atlesian Battleship is more powerful than simply ramming a hundred tons of steel in its general direction, but I can understand the sentiment. Like burning a house down because of a spider. I've gone through so many houses, now.**

 **jedimasterb10: You poor, poor soul.**

 **WonderDildo: Replace? Probably not. Improve, and gain new weapons? Definitely.**

 **lordrednight: When writing all the potions in the spreadsheet, I actually gave them flavors. I may be a little over-prepared for some things.**

 **H3RO: Whilst I won't write that, partly because Systema takes up all my time and partly because the idea just doesn't capture my interest all that much, I can guarantee that there is no such thing as 'more of a reader than a writer'. It doesn't matter how bad you think you'll do, I can confirm that someone out there will enjoy it.**

 **drannaka: I don't think that'll be how that works, because the plan for the Taijitu summon is actually a single-headed snake. For the time being, at least.**

 **razmire: You seem to forget that I have the power to shape this world as I see fit, and suddenly, it becomes all the more apparent when you consider Alcmena, the Stymphalian. Custom Grimm my dear friend, Custom Grimm. I already have a few more planned outside of just the ones we've seen so far. Also a sloth does seem to lack combat applications. And Imyoshi's Silver already has a pet sloth. Go read that, if you haven't.**

 **dirtrevor: You may be right, in regards to Ironwood, but remember this is a man raised in Atlas, trained in Atlas, and has taken a hell of a lot of damage for his kingdom. He feels as if stopping a conflict before it can occur is the best method, whereas we have the more reactionary Ozpin as a comparison. I still love all these characters, I cannot wait to go deeper into who they are, and why. I may even do entire flashback chapters, if I feel I can do something with that.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Oh gods, you've compared me to Weiss. I'm not sure if I should be flattered or offended. You are right when it comes to a lot of the things Jaune needs to do, though when it comes to spending Stat Points, I'm not too sure if that's Jaune's smartest plan right now, when he can instead level his buffs and save the points for situations where they become incredibly necessary, such as his injuries in Mountain Glenn. When it comes to titles, though, I'm still working on creating more, and reasons to use them over the standard ones he's been using up to this point. The 2:1 conversion for AP to HP sort of thing is actually really smart, and I love the idea, and will be writing up a concept for a more advanced skill as soon as I've finished editing this chapter, which will be hours ago by the time you read this. Isn't metaphorical time travel fun!**

 **Zathol: Every time you convince me more and more that Jaune needs a secret lair. Now that I'm thinking about it, no, damn it, don't give in! And Ozpin, actually caring about his student's well-being? What is this, pre-volume 6 characterization? (I might've given in, by the way. Not yet, plot-wise, but I agree, Jaune does need a lair.)**

 **Kane: Ah yes, the Elder Scrolls approach. I appreciate the warning, but Crafting as a concept is actually a little more limited than I think a lot of people expect.**

 **armentho: Oh boy, here we go. Another long review, love these ones! Actually, now that I read through this one again, it's pretty easy to summarize as army management. Something that, when Jaune does inevitably face down the Shai-Hulud once more, will not be one of his roles. A lot of this is incredibly detailed, in regards to damage and tactics, and I absolutely love the way you've done this kind of stuff. It helps out, really, as tactics for certain combat scenarios which don't boil down to 'hit it really hard' are actually quite difficult for me and the way my brain works. Like, whenever I play Pokemon, for example, I ditch all moves that don't do massive damage. I lose, in the end, because I don't have a strategy, and in this regard, Jaune is going to have to think laterally in order to create effective strategies. Battle Drain already exists in the spreadsheet, and I should really reinstall Shadow of Mordor, good game. Ambushes, though, those are going to be quite important later down the line. I'll turn Systema into XCOM, and we'll overwatch trap Salem.**

 **Adro-Sama: Unfortunately, not that kind of alchemy, haha. Though, that wouldn't be a bad idea to learn to create one, Yang may have need of it later.**

 **SirenAtlantica: I imagine it will be some time before you read this, but thanks! And no, it wasn't a deliberate reference, I still haven't watched Jojo, much to the dismay of jedimasterb10. Solid meme, though.**

 **And that about does it for reviews this week, thank you all for reading, you can talk to me on twitter fat_flying and support me on Pat reon as AFatFlyingWhale, and, as always, see you all next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**

* * *

 **[Stats]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman; Trained]**

 **[Level: 31]**

 **[XP: 192,040/357,492]**

 **[HP: 370/370 (1.85/s)]**

 **[SP: 370/370 (7.4/s)]**

 **[MP: 620/620 (6.2/s)]**

 **[AP: 2960/2960 (0.74/s)]**

 **[STR: 24]**

 **[END: 37]**

 **[AGI: 17]**

 **[INT: 31]**

 **[WIS: 31]**

 **[CHA: 17]**

 **[LCK: 13]**

 **[Stat Points: 75]**

 **[Lien: 24,445]**


	35. How Date?

**Hey, hope you enjoy this chapter! Thanks to Justas Kondrusevicius for supporting me this month!**

* * *

Having no real experience in planning such an event, Yang was doing remarkably well wrangling Weiss's insistence on having as many Atlesian-themed items as possible.

Sure, she acquiesced on the music, at least for early in the night, and had managed to convince her that fog machines were in fact a good idea, but Weiss was absolutely unrelenting when it came to the coloration of the scenery.

Pale blues, pinks and a pleasing tone of white were their theme, and she had shut down Yang almost instantly when it came to more vibrant colors.

She'd also made sure that Yang would have no opportunity to spike the punch, despite the fact that Yang would do no such thing. Yang was perfectly aware that Ruby was going to be present, and most likely to spend her entire time at the punch table.

Ruby, of course, wasn't aware that she was going to be present, and there was absolutely a one-hundred percent chance that Ruby was going to be forced into going. As her older sister, Yang had a duty, a prerogative, to make sure that Ruby didn't miss her first Beacon dance, despite the fact that she was two years younger.

As long as Yang also managed to make sure that Ruby took absolutely no part in the more typical after-dance affairs. That was completely off-limits.

No way. Not happening. Even the thought of it was enough to make the blonde's eyes flicker red.

"Hey, Weiss, we almost finished with the prep?" Yang asked, looking over to where Weiss looked torn, glancing between two identical doilies.

"Almost. If you would actually help me with this decision, we could be finished all the sooner."

"Weiss, they're the same doily. You're literally holding the same thing in both hands."

Weiss glared her typical ice-cold glare at Yang. "You are absolutely no help."

Yang shrugged. "I tried."

"Yang! Why do I have to go!"

Yang let out a hefty sigh. This was not the first time they'd discussed this. "Because, Ruby, it's your first dance! You can't miss it, you'll regret it for the rest of your life!"

Ruby pouted hard, and Yang had to avert her eyes in order to not give in. "Nuh uh, Rubes, you don't get to use that on me!"

Ruby's pout transformed into a flat expression. "Can I at least not wear lady-stilts?"

"This is non-negotiable, Ruby. What kind of standard would you be setting, as our team leader?"

Ruby snorted. "Not like I set much of a standard. You all just do whatever you want anyway."

Yang shrugged. "Not like what we do is hunt down terrorists, fight giant worms and generally make life strange."

Weiss looked back up, another glare. "It isn't like we have much of a choice."

"You don't have a choice about hunting down terrorists?" Ruby asked.

Weiss swapped her glare to Ruby, who wilted somewhat.

"Easy, Weiss. Don't you have identical doilies to choose from?"

"Yang, do not give me a reason to end your life. I know where you sleep."

Yang winced. That was cold.

"So, Ruby, have you worked up the nerve to ask Jaune to the dance?"

That was a question that had the smaller girl whip her head around to stare at her sister. "What?!"

Yang's smile was one of victory. "I said-"

Ruby interrupted her before she could repeat herself. "I know what you said! I'm just a little curious as to why you decided to, oh, I don't know, let the entire school know!"

Yang held back a laugh with difficulty, turning it into more of an amused snort than anything else. "Relax, Rubes. It's just Weiss and I."

"Isn't the man supposed to be the one who asks the woman to dance?" Weiss asked, quirking an eyebrow, already over their prior disagreement in the favour of a new one.

Yang shrugged. "I don't think it matters all that much. Besides, you're Jaune's teammate, do you think there's any chance of him asking Ruby?"

Weiss scoffed. "If it wasn't for the fact that we're so heavily involved in organising this dance I'm sure he wouldn't even be aware it was on. For once, you may be right. Ruby may have no other option."

Yang took Weiss's point and ran with it. "See, Rubes? If you don't ask him, he's not going to ask you, because he's even worse than you when it comes to social situations."

"He's not that bad, Yang!" Ruby objected.

"He's a teenage male, of course he's worse than you when it comes to discussing relationships. And besides, it isn't like he has many male friends to discuss this with, unlike you with us," Weiss pointed out, placing one of the two doilies on the table and staring at it.

"Yeah, but Jaune could always boost his Charisma a bunch and leave my in his wake as he goes on some kind of rampage through all the women in Beacon!" Ruby exclaimed dramatically.

Yang's eyes boggled as Weiss held back a laugh, actually drawing her eyes from her task.

"Ruby, I doubt anything, even supernatural weird crap, would be enough for Jaune to seem attractive to every woman. He's got some fierce competition, and not just in the form of other people," Yang said, once she'd recovered.

Weiss nodded. "I would rather sleep with Cardin than Jaune. Granted, I would rather die than sleep with either, but the point still stands."

"So, ask him, Rubes. What's the worst that could happen?" Yang said, taking one of the doilies from Weiss's hand and throwing it aside, effectively making the decision for her.

"You brute, I was about to choose that one!"

* * *

Jaune was currently in Vale. This, on its own, was nothing particularly special in any real way, but it was the reason he was here with Ren that was the more unique circumstance.

"Man, suit's aren't cheap," Jaune said, the two standing at an empty counter.

"I suppose that's the reason why most people hire the suit instead of purchasing it," Ren stated, frowning as he looked at the nearest price tag.

"But the store won't let us hire because…"

Ren sighed. "Because they know we need them, and can't leave without them. They've got us pinned, effectively."

"But over four thousand Lien?"

At this, Ren shrugged. "I suppose it's because it's custom-tailored in less than a day, which, as far as I'm aware, is rather impressive."

"But four thousand?"

Ren faced Jaune, his trademark stare looking deep into the blond's eyes. "You make money appear from nothing."

Jaune opened his mouth to object, before promptly shutting it with an audible click.

"Does four thousand seem like a lot now, in hindsight?"

Jaune shook his head dejectedly. "I still think I'm only going to use it once."

At that, Ren sighed. "Well, some things have to be the cloud in order for there to be a silver lining, I suppose."

It was at this moment that the attendant returned. "Well, thank you for your patronage. If you move to the fitting rooms, our fitters will see you shortly."

Jaune and Ren were led to two separate rooms, both sharing a glance and a shrug before stepping inside.

There were a bunch of tools, measures and bolts of fabric lining the walls, all either hanging on hooks or placed on shelves, and the far wall featured a large floor-to-ceiling mirror, showing a rather confused blond teen standing in the doorway, and an impeccably dressed man.

"You must be either Mr Arc or Mr Lie?" He said, trailing off, expecting an answer.

"Jaune Arc," Jaune answered.

The man's dark skin stood out in contrast to his white and grey suit, a bright lime tie bringing out his likewise-colored eyes. "My name is Baharat. I'll be handling your measuring and design, so if you have anything you'd like to mention beforehand, please do, as now would be a good time."

"Uh…" Jaune said coherently.

The door closed behind Jaune, and Baharat stepped closer, eyeing Jaune like a shark would eye it's prey. "You intrigue me. You speak as if you have no sense of style, yet you dress like someone who at least has some kind of grasp. I particularly like the coat. This is your first time doing something like this, yes?"

Jaune nodded dumbly.

"You have a theme, I can see, so it may be best to stick with it. Is cost a problem?"

Jaune was about to say yes, before once again being reminded of what Ren had said. "No, it shouldn't be. As long as it doesn't cost an arm and a leg, at least."

A breathy chuckle exited Baharat's mouth as he gently prodded Jaune forwards, to the center of the room.

It was incredible to watch the tall man work, and now that Jaune noticed, Baharat was tall. Very tall. Taller than Jaune was, for that matter. It gave him almost a gangly look, like some kind of skeleton.

Measuring was a simple affair with Baharat behind the tape, the man appeared to be born to use a measuring tape as he rapidly measured Jaune up.

The spindly man didn't even need to write down the measurements, apparently storing them in his mind with practised ease.

"Finished. You are quite tall for your age, no?"

Jaune didn't have an answer for that. "Uh… Yes?"

Baharat walked over to the nearest shelf, eyes tracking their way along the fabrics that sat there.

"Is there something special you would like your suit to be made of? Hunter material, yes?"

Jaune shrugged. "I'm not really planning on getting into a fight whilst wearing it."

Baharat let out another breathy chuckle. "No one plans on getting into a fight. Not the least someone like you."

Jaune had to agree with that. "What kind of material do you have?"

"I have fabrics that are somewhat bulletproof, somewhat fireproof, somewhat shock absorbent, and somewhat… difficult to track. The last one is something I have been assured of, though I have no evidence to provide myself."

"Wow. That's… quite a selection," Jaune said, staring at the shelf with newfound respect.

"Yes. Unfortunately, the bulletproof fabric is quite coarse and heavy, so I wouldn't recommend it, considering you already have Aura. Same reasoning behind shock absorbent fabric, too."

"Well, I don't need to blend in. Fireproof?" Jaune stated, quirking an eyebrow as Baharat brought out the fabric, and held it out to the teen.

Jaune ran his hand down the soft material, noticing the thin interlacing pattern that cascaded down the shiny surface. "It's smoother than I thought it would be."

Baharat gave yet again another breathy chuckle. "That is a common reaction. In reality, this is a blend of fabrics that gives it remarkable resistance to burning, or catching fire. Useful against Dust users, mostly, as the most commonly used Dust in fighting is Fire Dust."

"So, you're going to make my suit out of it?"

Baharat practically glared at Jaune. "No, foolish Hunter. It would have no structure, no style. I will layer it inside, a protective layer to add to the suit itself, rather than making it out of this material. It does not sit right, the fit would be off, if I did as you suggested."

"Ah, right," Jaune remarked, not understanding a thing the skeletal man had said.

"Now, you may leave. Return tomorrow, it will be finished. You paid for rapid service, and I shall deliver."

Jaune nodded dumbly, simply following instructions and stepping out the door that Baharat held open.

Jaune was, frankly, confused.

* * *

Ruby didn't know how to ask what she wanted to ask.

It wasn't that she didn't know, exactly, but more that she didn't know how to begin to ask what she wanted to ask.

It was complicated, that much was for certain.

So, she'd break it down in her mind, step by step, and figure out where to start.

' _I want to ask Jaune to the dance.'_

Okay, simple enough. That wasn't really a step, though, more of a final objective.

' _I should go ask Jaune to the dance?'_

Alright, getting somewhere now. A plan, however lacking in detail, was still a plan.

' _I should find Jaune and just ask him directly, so he doesn't misunderstand or get asked by someone else.'_

The dark little corner of her mind piped up with a chorus of varying 'what ifs', but Ruby ignored them, pacing her way towards AWBN's dorm, her plan of action in the forefront of her mind.

' _What if he doesn't like me?'_

That stray thought threatened to overwhelm her as it popped into her mental foreground, halting her physical progress in an instant.

' _What if Jaune thinks I'm annoying?'_

The thought crushed her morale like a bug underfoot a Goliath, and Ruby found herself backpedalling away from the dorms.

' _I can't do this!'_

"Hey Ruby!"

Jaune's voice, suddenly sounding out from behind her, made her jump in fright, and let out a legitimate yelp.

"Sorry, did I surprise you?" Jaune asked, concern flashing over his face.

Ruby was quick to create a flawless cover story. "No, I was just, uh…"

' _Nicely done, Ruby. Brilliant.'_

Ruby floundered, speechless, for a moment, and quickly latched onto the nearest topic she could think of. "Where'd you and Ren go?"

Jaune gave that damned back-of-the-head scratch and a nervous smile that made her heart skip a beat. "We were getting our suits for the dance."

' _There! A segue! Use it!'_

"The dance, huh? Are you going with anyone?"

Jaune shook his head. "No, I was just going to go alone, you know? I'm not exactly great with social situations."

Ruby could absolutely commiserate. In fact, she would've been commiserating right now if it wasn't for the fact that she was currently dealing with a social situation that was far beyond her.

"Would you go with me?" Ruby asked, as surprised as Jaune as the words tumbled out of her mouth.

She was so busy being confused where her sudden ability to dive headfirst into that problem had come from that she almost missed Jaune's response.

"Sure, I'd like that. I'm pretty sure we're all meeting up at the same time, so there isn't much to organise."

Ruby was once again speechless.

"Well, thanks for asking me, Ruby. I have to go do some training, but I'll see you soon."

Ruby stood there in shock, mouth agape, as Jaune walked past her with a wave, leaving her standing there with Ren.

"Congratulations, team leader."

The only sound that left Ruby's mouth was a confused whine.

' _Dismount was a little off, but a successful attempt nonetheless! Now, stop standing there dumbfounded and move!'_

Ruby did not move, and Ren gave a sigh, hefting the smaller girl and carrying her into their dorm where she could unfreeze on her own schedule.

* * *

Jaune was in a great mood. Not only was he going to have a nice suit, he was also going to have an actual date to the dance!

This was great news, because he really enjoyed Ruby's company, and it had been some time since they'd last gone out.

Jaune froze on the spot, halfway through the door to the dorm.

' _Gone out. Date to the dance. Oh. Oh!'_

Suddenly, everything clicked.

' _Am… am I dating Ruby?'_

It seemed like a question with a remarkably easy yes or no answer, but in reality, things were far more complicated.

What constituted dating? Was there a requirement, or a classification, or was it more natural, less specific?

Jaune didn't know. He'd never dated anyone before. Technically, he wasn't sure if he was even dating someone now, to be fair.

Not that Ruby had all that much more experience, unless she was a radically different person than Jaune had seen.

For very much not the first time in his life, Jaune needed advice, and there was only one person he could think of. He just hoped that the timezone difference, which he had no idea how to calculate, wasn't too big.

Grabbing his scroll and stepping back out of AWBN's dorm, Jaune quickly covered ground, heading for a sparsely populated area where he could make a private call, and it didn't take him long to find somewhere.

A small courtyard out the back of the library, devoid of sentient life. Perfect.

Jaune quickly dialled a number, waiting and hoping for an answer.

Surprisingly, it didn't take long before Saphron Arc, Jaune's second-oldest sister, answered the call.

"Jaune? I can't say I ever expected to get a call from you. What's wrong?" Saphron asked, concern feeding over the line.

"Nothing's wrong, Saph, I just needed to ask you some advice."

"Oh? Do tell," Saphron teased, and Jaune swallowed his fear.

"I need dating advice."

Saphron burst into laughter. "Really? That's it? Why not Daisy?"

Jaune sighed. "Because if I asked, she'd never let me live it down, and you know how she is. She's always looking for ammunition to use against me, ever since the pool incident."

Saphron suppressed a snigger. "Well, go on then, out with it."

"How do you know if you're dating someone?"

Jaune could practically hear Saphron raise an eyebrow. "You're going to have to rephrase that."

"Well, I'm going to the dance with a girl, and we went out into Vale once before, and had dinner together. Does that constitute dating, or is it something… I don't know, less definitive?"

Jaune listened as Saphron gave a sigh, the tinny speakers on the scroll not doing his sister justice. "Jaune, look, Terra and I were dated for a while, but I can't really explain when it turned from friendship to something more. It's… contextual, I guess. You have to feel it out, understand the situation and the other person's feelings. How do they feel about you?"

"Well, she was the one who asked me to the dance, so…"

Another sigh. "Damnit, Jaune, that's pretty much definitive proof she likes you!"

Jaune scratched at the back of his head. "Well, I mean... we're both team leaders, so I guess I could've thought it was as friends, or as fellow leaders."

"Did you?"

"I, uh… wanted to get a second opinion."

Saphron laughed at that. "Fair enough. Did I help?"

Jaune nodded, before remembering that Saphron couldn't see him. "Yeah, you did. Thanks Saph."

He could hear Saphron preening at the praise.

"So, you said dated? I thought you and Terra were still together?"

Saphron choked back a sound of surprise. "You picked up on that, but can't tell if you're dating someone?"

Jaune laughed. "Hidden talent, I guess. So?"

"Alright, sheesh. Don't tell mom or dad, or any of our sisters, but we're getting married pretty soon. I haven't told anyone else yet, so consider this a total secret, got it?"

Jaune couldn't help the giant smile that crossed his face. "Yeah, I got it. Congratulations."

"Shut up you, I mean it. Mom would flip, she wanted to be the first to know. She'll ring you, give you the news, and you have to pretend to sound like you've never heard it before, got it?"

Jaune lifted his metaphorical hands in a metaphorically placating metaphorical gesture, in a metaphorical attempt to calm his very literal sister. "So, first you have your name changed, then you decide to tell me first? Are you trying to make mom mad?"

"Do not even start with me, Jaune. I swear, I won't invite you to the wedding, and I'll tell mom all about your escapades with this new girl you're kind-of-dating."

Jaune paled. "You wouldn't dare."

"I still have all that blackmail material from years past, Jaune. You shouldn't mess with me, I have the power here."

Jaune grumbled something unintelligble, but the shocked gasp from the other end of the scroll indicated that Saphron had heard.

"You wouldn't! My own brother!"

Silence continued for a moment, before the two burst into laughter. "It was good to talk to you, Jaune."

Jaune smiled once more. "Yeah, thanks for the help Saph. I'll keep your stuff under wraps, too."

"You'd better."

* * *

The rhythmic smacking of fist on bag echoed throughout the gym, Yang's primary location of existence, and all the first years knew it. Most steered clear of the place, some afraid of her, some feeling unimpressive in comparison, but it was mostly because the majority of Beacon's students didn't uphold their physical training to the same standard that the top two first year teams did.

There were a few teams from Haven that did, but they too were in similar situations at their own academies, so it was more that they were in direct competition with AWBN and RRYN than anything else.

Out of the few people that were welcome in the gym, one was another frequent user of the space.

"Hey, Pyrrha. How's it going?" Yang asked, as the redhead stepped into the gym.

Her typical clothes had been foregone in favor of a somewhat equally modest set of exercise gear, and she slung her cloth over the nearest hook, laying her weapons against the wall. "Not bad. We haven't had any reality-breaking experiences lately, so things are looking up."

Yang chuckled at that. "Wanna go a round or two, shake off the rust? You haven't had to fight for your life for at least a week."

Pyrrha smirked at that. "Says you. How many times have you had to fight White Fang, giant Grimm worms, and various things you had previously thought impossible? I feel like out of the two of us, it isn't myself that is the rusty one."

"Fighting words, Pyr. You trying to rile me up?" Yang asked, grabbing Ember Celica from the bench and sliding them onto her wrists.

Pyrrha's weapons floated into her hands, and she gripped Milo and Akouo loosely. "Maybe I am. Maybe I'm hoping that the angrier you are, the more likely you are to make mistakes."

"Pfft. Angry? This is just flirting, Pyr. Wanna move on to the main event?"

Yang chambered a round as Pyrrha gave Milo a quick spin, the two wearing remarkably similar confident expressions.

It was lucky that the gym had a spot for sparring, or a few spots as it were, because if not, Pyrrha and Yang would've trashed a lot of training equipment.

Yang began the fight the moment the two were in the ring, charging forward and swinging hard, delivering a crushing haymaker that reverberated Pyrrha's arm under Akouo as she blocked the strike, bringing Milo forwards in an attempt to stab Yang in the midsection, only for Yang's other hand to push it aside, reaching for a grapple.

Pyrrha refused to give her the satisfaction, disengaging and blocking the retaliatory buckshot that impacted against her shield with a resounding sound like a bell tower being shot.

Yang used the distraction to try and cycle round, repositioning herself for another attack in an effort to drive Pyrrha out of the ring, but Pyrrha had experienced that countless times, and was not about to make a rookie mistake like that, swivelling to the side at the last second to let Yang sway past her.

Yang, however, had been training with Pyrrha since the beginning of Beacon, and had feinted the charge, sliding to a stop and using her momentum to attempt to clothesline the champion.

It only somewhat worked, sliding off the top of her angled shield and jolting the redhead backwards somewhat, but it left Yang exposed, and a swift kick to the midsection punished that mistake, driving the air out of Yang's lungs and sending her stumbling back, her guard up.

Pyrrha's shield hit Yang in the ankles as the champion threw it, already preparing a follow-up attack that was effectively a match ender, her heel already driving towards the top of Yang's unguarded head in a sharp axe-kick, but Yang just managed to avoid it, tanking the attack on her shoulder, wrapping her arms around Pyrrha's leg and twisting.

Pyrrha, completely off-balance, quickly tried to regain her footing, but with only one leg under her control and the other stretched and rotated, Pyrrha was completely exposed to an attack.

Unfortunately for Yang, she would have to release her leg in order to capitalise on the weakness.

It was a stalemate, so Yang broke it, heaving hard and effectively throwing Pyrrha's leg, and the girl along with it, into the air, where she flipped, landing perfectly, her shield sliding back into her grip.

"Not bad, Yang. You've improved."

"Heh, I guess. So have you, though. We're still equal."

Pyrrha shook her head, her competitiveness shining through her usually placid personality. "We have yet to prove you're reached that level yet."

Yang smirked. "Oh, maybe in a fight, sure, but what about social situations, huh?"

That caught Pyrrha off guard, and she took half a step back. "I'm excellent in social situations!"

"You're more like a nicer Weiss, Pyr," Yang said with a laugh, retracting Ember Celica. "I wouldn't say you've got the whole relaxed thing down."

Pyrrha folded her arms. "Oh? You think you're better than me at being a socialite?"

Yang laughed. "Yeah, I do! I bet you don't even have a date to the dance because you were too nervous to ask, weren't you?"

Pyrrha's weapons hit the floor, and she stepped far closer to Yang than the blonde had expected.

"Neither do you, Yang. Are you sure you aren't pushing your concerns onto me in order to feel like you have more control?"

The question caught Yang more off guard than Pyrrha's sudden closeness.

"I… uh…"

"Maybe you play the cocky socialite because you don't have the first clue about how to have a relationship, and are waiting for someone to teach you. You flaunt and tease to cover your insecurities."

"I…"

"Let's fix that, shall we?"

Pyrrha stepped back, her weapons magnetizing to her back without so much as a glance. "I'll pick you up before the dance."

With her final words, Pyrrha stepped out of the gym, leaving a somewhat shell-shocked Yang staring at her retreating figure.

"That… huh."

* * *

"Blake, Yang and I didn't spend nearly a week preparing a school dance just so my partner couldn't show up."

"You seriously want me to go? It's a dance, Weiss, not an exam, or a funeral. It doesn't mean anything."

Weiss stared resolutely at Blake.

Blake stared resolutely back.

"You need to go."

"No."

Weiss sighed. "Blake, I'm serious. I spent a long time setting all of this up, the least you could do is turn up and support me, as my partner. Or does that mean nothing to you?"

Blake frowned. "It's just a dance, Weiss."

Weiss shook her head, newfound anger surfacing. "It isn't 'just a dance', Blake! I'm trying my absolute best to get to know you, to understand who you are as a person! Do you understand how difficult that is for me? My father spent my entire childhood grooming me to be his successor, and that meant following his rules, his guidelines, his hatred!"

Weiss stomped over to her bed and planted herself on it, keeping her gaze on Blake. "I want to know why you fought, I want to understand you, help you, and hopefully, when I become the head of the SDC, help all of the Faunus! I want to achieve the very same thing you do, Blake, the difference is is that instead of paranoia and sleeplessness, I'm focusing on making sure we think every single move we make through!"

Weiss threw her hand to the side. "I get that we've been dealt a pretty confusing hand, but someone I know and care for once told me that the only way to win is to think carefully. You want to bet big and bluff hard, the only problem is that you have a poor excuse for a poker face, Blake! Take a look at yourself!"

Blake did so, checking her reflection in her scroll. The dark bags under her eyes stood out as a dramatic reminder that she hadn't been sleeping all that well.

"There's too much to do, Weiss. If I stop, they gain an advantage. I'm the only one who knows what they're doing!" Blake exclaimed, not willing to give the white-haired girl any points.

"Oh?" Weiss exclaimed, seething venom. "Do tell me, what are they planning?"

Blake stalled for as long as she could, but it was for nought.

"Exactly. All you're doing is hurting yourself, and giving them an advantage. It's not helping, Blake. I need you to get yourself together in time for our joint mission with RRYN and the Atlesian Military, and the best way to do that is to relax. So, you're coming to the dance. There is no other option, you will come, you will dance with us, you will enjoy yourself, or so help me Blake, there will be consequences. Consequences you will not like."

"But-"

"No buts, Blake. Team leader's orders, and partner's orders. I'm pretty sure Pyrrha would agree, if she would stop cowering in the corner with her face bright red."

Both girls turned their eyes to the huddled form of Pyrrha in the corner of the room.

Muffled muttering emerged from her, but even Blake couldn't pick it up.

"Fine, Weiss. You want me to relax so bad, I'll go. Under orders," Blake finally said, after a few moments of silence. "I don't like that you're making me divert time from fighting the White Fang, but you may be right."

"May be? Blake, you couldn't stop Winchester from hurting you at this point. You're exhausted, emotionally and physically, you need this. It can only help."

Blake sighed. "You win, Weiss, I'll stop."

Weiss nodded, grateful. "Sleep now. Don't argue, you need it. I've already taken the liberty of having a dress ordered for you, so get some rest."

Before Blake drifted off, she had one final question. "You had a dress ordered already?"

Weiss's smile was a mix of viciousness, pride, and happiness. "It may be best to remember that I always get what I want."

Those terrifying words were the final things Blake heard before she exited reality and entered the state known commonly as sleep.

* * *

"What do you mean you've had a setback?!"

The words came out as more of a whispered hiss than anything else, but it wasn't the delivery of the line that was the biggest issue Cinder had plaguing her mind.

The voice that came through the other end was tinny, her scroll held up to her ear. "It's not easy to explain. These stupid White Fang, they're barely capable of handling a Beowolf, let alone something bigger. These morons keep disappearing, and it isn't Atlas. Atlas aren't usually ones for subtlety."

"Torchwick, if it's a Grimm, avoid it. If it's as threatening as you say, it may prove beneficial for when you enact the plan."

Torchwick laughed. "If we even make it that long. This thing, if we're not careful, it'll devour us, right alongside the rest of Vale. I don't know about what you have planned, but it might eat that too. The tunnels it leaves…"

Cinder swore under her breath. "Regardless, Roman, the plan stays the same. Try not to fail me again, or you may prefer the Grimm."

The woman hung up quickly, throwing her scroll aside in frustration. She was alone in the dorm they'd been assigned, Emerald was out getting the two of them dresses, and Mercury was out retrieving a suit.

At least, she was as alone as she could be.

"Peace. You will feed soon."

She could feel it squirm in hunger.

* * *

 **That was a surprisingly fun chapter to write. I'm still a little unsure about Pyrrha's aggressiveness, but I feel like it kind of fits her character better than a lot of her awkwardness in canon, due to the differing circumstances.**

 **Onto reviews!**

 **DuplicateUserName: It is pretty funny how, with absolutely no intention on my part, how similar their semblances could be construed. If he dyed his hair white we would have a pretty entertaining cover, at the very least.**

 **lordrednight: God, there's an idea. Give Nora the System, that'd make for one hell of a story. Don't think anyone's tried that before, Nora and Ren are pretty much background characters half the time, and rarely get given the focus they deserve.**

 **SirenAtlantica: In what situation would smelling nice to fish be useless? Flirting with Blake would suddenly become like one-hundred times easier, and fighting giant Kraken? What could go wrong?**

 **jedimasterb10: Well, can't say I knew about hints towards MGS6, so that's always good. As flawed as MGSV is, many of it's features have been adapted in certain concepts. The whole resources concept is actually a really neat system, and I may steal- er, 'borrow' it.**

 **dirtrevor: I have named a few of the future summons, and the wyvern/wyrm/dragon (whatever it is in canon) already has a name. I do need to make a perk for it, though, and I have a couple ideas. As for skills that increase effectiveness, yes. Just not yet.**

 **razmire: Ooh, let's not get me too excited. Xenogrimm? Grimmomorphs? Who knows!? Definitely going to detail out a Grimm facehugger of some sort though.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Technically, he gets a perk at 25 of each stat, but you are right. It's like the volume on a TV, if it isn't round numbers it aggravates. Sometimes I swear people do it deliberately. And your suggestion of a Grimm hunting-cat has been written up, I love the idea, and think that it might be best as a Lynx. Or maybe a Puma.**

 **Kane: Wall of text is somewhat accurate, haha. You present a number of good points in regards to future summons, but I'm leaning towards more contextual summons than anything else, and the important part that I haven't made clear enough, for partially a good reason, is cost. Summons, to create, have a cost that increases dramatically for each summon. For reference, it takes 2 Regular Soul Orbs for Jaune's next summon to be created. Sure, he can make a few of them, but it also depends on the amount of ambient soul in the area. Your points concerning types of summons and their technical classifications are useful for me to understand where a certain Grimm may sit in the hierarchy, though, so cheers! The summons will at least have character traits, and will evolve over time, hopefully. And you are right, Cardin is effectively a punching bag, but that's for good reason. I have a couple things planned with him, don't you worry.**

 **Armentho: As per your request, which I agree with, the Public Spreadsheet now features a page on the current Bound Souls that Jaune has in his possession. As for everything you've said in regards to combat techniques and strategies, I really appreciate your analysis. It helps for writing combat, providing concepts I can adjust to fit certain scenarios, because there's no way a single person could feasibly come up with thousands of combos all on his own. A homing bolt of some sort, almost Guardians of the Galaxy's Yondu-esq, that sounds awesome, and a Mana Flak? Hoo boy. Team-based combat training is planned, and is probably going to happen post-volume 2 pre-volume 3, canon-timeframe wise.**

 **greenitricoxide345: Not neccesarily, but I won't rule that out. Thing is, we see new Grimm in canon all the time, when we actually see Grimm. A lot of early canon actually features very few Grimm in the grand scheme of things, and considering how much of a threat they are to the entirety of Remnant, it is kind of important to establish them as an actual threat rather than cannon fodder.**

 **FORD B: Aww, thanks!**

 **And that about does it for reviews this week, cheers all of you, you're all brilliant people, and I'm glad to have you all along for the ride! There are seriously so many of you now, it's a little crazy.**

 **If you want, you can follow me on twitter fat_flying, and if you want to support me, I'm on Pa Treon, as AFatFlyingWhale.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	36. Jaune, I Think We're Dating?

**Apologies for this chapter being late, but I hope you enjoy, and there (hopefully) be another one on Friday!**

 **Thanks to Justas Kondrusevicius for supporting me this month!**

* * *

Suit?

Check.

Bowtie?

Check.

All in all, Jaune had to say, he looked remarkably prepared.

"Jaune, that's the third time you've checked to make sure you have everything."

Jaune swiveled as Weiss emerged from their bathroom, where she'd been getting changed.

"Fifth time, actually, whilst you were getting ready he checked himself twice."

Jaune spun back to Ren, who was adjusting his suit.

Pyrrha, thankfully, decided not to remark, instead slipping past Weiss and closing the door behind her.

"I appreciate you all letting me get prepared in here. I can imagine that Nora wouldn't take kindly to being seen too early, after all," Ren said, once Jaune had felt suitably chastised for his nervousness.

"Of course, and we can say the same concerning Blake," Weiss replied, giving herself a once over. "I must say, I hadn't expected either you nor Nora to actually make a move. It has been rather… entertaining… to watch the two of you avoid the topic like it was a bundle of live snakes."

Jaune raised an eyebrow at that, glad to have something to distract himself with. "Oh, and the whole 'forbidden love' thing with you and Blake hasn't been?"

Weiss's sputtering was all the response he needed to know he'd scored a point in their metaphorical game of words. To her credit, though, Weiss recovered quickly. "It was you who ordered me to help Blake relax! And it isn't like that!"

Jaune nodded sagely. "Ah, I see. I understand perfectly."

Ren mirrored the nod, glad to have some ammunition to return fire with.

"I- You- Ugh!" Weiss pushed through nonetheless, quickly regaining her composure. "At least I know how to dance. You won't see me stumbling around with three left feet, Arc."

Jaune's smile widened. "Oh, really? You don't think I can dance?"

Weiss's confident smirk dropped a level. "Of course, your stupid semblance."

Jaune shook his head. "Nope. Seven sisters."

Weiss threw both her hands in the air in discontent. "Of course. How could I possibly forget."

This was the moment that Pyrrha decided to re-emerge. "At least that makes for one capable dancer per pair. From what Yang's told me, Ruby isn't looking forward to what I believe she called 'lady stilts'."

Jaune laughed. "I can imagine. How all three members of AWBN do it all the time is beyond me."

"Time, effort, and a lot of experience, mostly. We could get you a pair, make it a full team bonding exercise."

Jaune rolled his eyes at Pyrrha. "I'd look fantastic, thank you very much."

"I'm certain we have a spare dress lying around that might fit you, if you so wished," Weiss commented, and Jaune laughed once more.

A few seconds passed by silently, before Ren sighed. "Well, shall we stop hiding and face the proverbial music?"

"I think that it's more likely to be literal music, Ren," Jaune remarked.

"You're stalling," Ren pointed out.

"So are you," Jaune pointed out in return.

Weiss let out a huff, gesturing to the door. "Well, 'fearless leader', care to lead the way?"

Jaune gave a comical glare at that as he began to leave the room. "That was an insult, wasn't it."

Weiss's hands clapped a quiet applause that followed him into the hall.

* * *

The hall had been transformed. It was pretty much the only way to put it, really, and considering Jaune had yet to actually see it, he was blown away. "Wow, Weiss, you and Yang really went all out. This looks completely different from the last time we were in here."

Weiss preened at the compliment. "Thank you, Jaune."

That was possibly the most friendly and accepting Weiss had ever been, and it had both Pyrrha and Ren look at her in surprise.

"What? Am I not allowed to accept a compliment with dignity or something?"

Ren shrugged. "You just never struck me as the type."

Weiss tried to object, she did, and to her credit she managed to open her mouth, finger pointed at Ren and Pyrrha, before promptly shutting down as she noticed the four approaching figures behind the two.

Jaune, as it appeared, had also noticed, and as Pyrrha and Ren turned, they too became as dumbstruck as the rest of the approaching group.

All eight of them were as surprised as each other at exactly how they looked, which was a very complicated statement.

Jaune summarised their entire thought processes with a single utterance of one word. "Wow…"

He took in the approaching four with surprise and awe, but his attention had almost been completely drawn to Ruby, who, despite the occasional stumble, looked…

Jaune didn't have the words to describe how she looked. Or, rather, that he had too many, and deciding on a single one was a task best left to someone far more decisive.

Stunning was a good one to summarize, though.

For all her objections, Ruby looked incredible. Her sleeveless red dress, with the black sash that wrapped around her midsection, made her look mindbogglingly good, at least in Jaune's opinion. He wasn't sure if mindbogglingly was a word, either, but it served its purpose nonetheless.

Alongside her stood the rest of her team, minus Ren and plus Blake, and they quickly broke off, as everyone approached their dance partner.

It was honestly impressive how good everyone looked, and as Jaune stepped closer to Ruby, he noticed that the girl seemed just as stunned as he, and everyone else, appeared to be.

"Hey, uh, Jaune… you look… uhh…" Ruby began, trailing off as the words failed to take the fateful leap off the end of her tongue.

"Wow," Jaune repeated, barely able to form coherent thoughts. ' _C'mon Charisma, don't fail me now.'_

Frankly, Jaune was surprised his Charisma had held out this long, whatever that actually meant. He wasn't entirely sure, he was somewhat distracted.

Stunned silence continued on for a few moments, before Ruby sniggered, blushing hard. "What are we doing?"

Jaune couldn't help but laugh either. "Being awkward?"

"At least we both know we're good at that," Ruby remarked, wobbling slightly as she took a step. "Woah, these things are going to be the death of me!"

Jaune offered an arm, which Ruby took gratefully. "Thanks. I seriously don't know how your team fights in these!"

Jaune laughed again. "I have been enlightened by Pyrrha, in that regard. Apparently, with a lot of practice and effort."

Ruby hummed in thought, as the two started heading towards the hall. "That makes sense, I guess. I don't know why they thought to do that in the first place, though."

"Miss your boots?"

Ruby nodded vigorously, almost losing balance again, clinging to Jaune in order to maintain uprightedness. "My boots don't make me feel like I'm walking everywhere on my toes, atop a set of stilts!"

Jaune pushed open the door to the hall with one arm, holding it open as Ruby carefully stepped over the threshold.

Ruby had seen what was in store, from her time simply spent hanging around Yang and Weiss whilst they had been preparing, but seeing it in preparation and seeing it when it was all ready and running were two different things.

Jaune, however, had not seen it in either, and so he stared in surprise at the decorations that had been set up, the tasteful fabrics and the peaceful colors that gave the hall a complete rework, unlike the first night they had spent in it.

"Woah…" Ruby and Jaune echoed one another, looking around.

At the front, standing behind a small lectern, was Professor Goodwitch, wearing a rare smile on her face. "Mr Arc, Ms Rose, a pleasure to see the two of you. I assume the rest of your teams are behind you?"

Jaune nodded, and Ruby did much the same, though the red-clad girl followed it up with a compliment. "That's a nice dress, Professor."

Goodwitch nodded a thanks, and now that Jaune noticed, the deep purple dress that she wore was really nice. Jaune didn't know anything about dresses, of course, so he didn't know what kind of dress it was, but still…

"Well, head in, enjoy your night."

Jaune and Ruby decided it was probably for the best that they did so. Goodwitch might be acting nice now, but considering their previous experiences with the woman, it might not be their best bet to accidentally aggravate the woman.

Besides, there wasn't much point to the dance if they were just going to stand in the entrance the whole time.

Ruby led the way in, having somewhat accomplished a near-normality of balance atop her 'lady-stilts', and the two quickly found their way to a table, effectively claiming the eight-seater for team's AWBN and RRYN. The rest of their teams were, expectedly, quick to follow, and soon the stunned silence that they had all shared made way to a more natural chatter.

"Wait, let me get this straight: You asked Yang out because she challenged you?" Weiss asked, quirking an eyebrow at her redheaded teammate.

Pyrrha almost turned the same color as her hair. "I… might've gotten slightly wrapped up in the… competitive atmosphere?"

It almost sounded like Pyrrha couldn't believe it herself.

Currently, Ruby, Jaune, Weiss and Pyrrha were sat at the table, watching the other performing other dance-related tasks, taking the time to relax and catch up, something they hadn't really had a chance to do for what felt like a while.

Jaune leant over to his teammate, giving Weiss a nudge. "Hey, Weiss, looks like Blake's done dancing with Sun. Might want to go over."

Weiss gave Jaune a critical glance. "Since when do you hand out relationship advice?"

Ruby leaned over Jaune and gave Weiss a nudge, the white-haired girl raising her eyebrow once more as Ruby struggled to reach. "Yes, Ruby?"

"Technically, Jaune's the only one in an official relationship, so I think he's more qualified than the rest of you."

Yang stepped over, holding two glasses of punch, handing one to Pyrrha. "Well, that's new. I think I might be in shock. Ruby, getting a date? That was a surprise. But hearing her point out that she and Jaune are dating? Like, properly dating? Am I in some weird opposite-world?"

Ruby stood up and promptly poked her sister in the ribs.

"We haven't really discussed it in detail, so I hope I'm not jumping to conclusions…" Ruby murmured.

Jaune shook his head. "No, you're not. This is technically our second date, anyway."

At that Ruby nodded. "True."

Weiss stood from the table. "Excuse me, my partner needs a… partner. That didn't sound as good as I had intended."

Jaune contemplated giving the heiress a taste of her own quiet applause, but decided against it. "Have fun."

"This is nice, though, isn't it. The atmosphere, the people, everyone showed up, no-one's trying to kill us… it's almost perfect," Yang said with a smile, watching as Weiss began to teach Blake a traditional Atlesian two-step.

Pyrrha laughed. "Give it an hour, someone will spike the punch and try and pick a fight with the General."

Yang shook her head. "I wouldn't pick a fight with the General!"

Three seconds of silence passed, before Ruby stared her sister in the eyes. "Yang, did you spike the punch?"

"I definitely didn't do anything that you may or may not be inferring, based on what I may or may not have just said."

Pyrrha rounded on Yang. "Yang, did you spike the punch?"

Yang shook her head. "Nope. I just made a second bowl of punch that is spiked, and hid it. See? No problems!"

Pyrrha looked down to her mostly-empty glass of punch. "That wouldn't happen to be the same punch as what you just retrieved for the two of us, would it?"

Yang pointedly avoided looking at any of the table's current members.

"You forgot, didn't you," Jaune remarked, a growing smirk on his face.

"It's fine!" Yang exclaimed suddenly. "It's not like it's all that strong, it's just a little bit of added flavoring!"

Ruby poked Yang in the ribcage again, to which the blonde objected to by wrapping her arms around her sister and squeezing her in a hug.

As Ruby thrashed about in Yang's grasp, Jaune shared a glance with his partner. "You going to be alright?"

"More than alright. I just would've appreciated a heads-up, is all. I'll make sure Yang understands that, don't worry," Pyrrha responded, a slight grin on her face.

Yang quickly released Ruby, who retreated to the relative safety of her seat, sticking her tongue out.

Yang was far too terrified of the presence of her date to even notice. "It, uh, won't happen again?"

"Excellent. You wouldn't want to experience the sorts of things I've had to do to some of my more… enthusiastic fans."

Yang gulped.

Jaune stood up, holding his hand out to Ruby. "Care to dance?"

At this, Ruby managed to replicate the feeling her sister was currently experiencing. "I, uh…"

It was at this moment that Ruby decided to bite the bullet. "Sure, Jaune. I'm still a little wobbly, though…"

Jaune gave her a smile as she took his hand. "Don't worry, I've got you."

Before they could leave, Yang snagged his sleeve. "Hey, Jaune, when you two are finished, mind if I snag a dance with you?"

Jaune shrugged. "I don't mind if Ruby doesn't."

Ruby gave Jaune a playful smack on the arm. "Of course I don't."

With that, Jaune led Ruby to the dance floor, careful not to accidentally disturb Ren and Nora, the latter of which appeared to be in her own world.

* * *

Jaune was always hiding a surprise. One such surprise was that he was actually a really good dancer.

Even the System recognized it, because the moment he started to step in time to the music, he'd been awarded a skill.

 **[Skill imported!]**

 **[** _ **Dance (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of dancing all sorts of dances, with little to no effort. Dancing provides a chance to improve relations with the dance partner, with a higher CHA providing a higher chance._ _ **Level 37; XP 0/607,836.**_ **]**

Not only had it been awarded, it had been imported. Meaning he'd learned enough dancing from all the lessons his sisters had given him that it equalled to level 37! That made it his highest level skill, which was somewhat mortifying.

Then again, it wasn't nearly as mortifying as some of the other things his sisters had made him do, so it was fair to say that as long as this situation never called for him having to come up with a cross-dressing skill, he'd be fine.

Already Pyrrha had come too close to the truth. Dangerous times, truly.

Jaune snapped his attention back to the present, as Ruby and he swayed in time to the music, which, thankfully, had remained quite placid and calm this early in the evening.

"Hey, Jaune?" Ruby asked, looking up at him.

"Yeah?"

"Thanks."

Jaune was a little confused. "Thanks? What'd I do?"

Ruby let out a laugh. "Man, Yang wasn't kidding when she said you were dense."

Jaune wasn't sure if he was supposed to be offended, insulted, amused or accepting. He settled for none of the above. "Seriously, though, what did I do?"

Ruby leaned into him a bit. "Being my friend. Being our friend, I guess. It's a bit strange, but you've got so much going on with your life, and yet you still make time for us. I appreciate that."

Jaune would've scratched the back of his head if he had a third arm. "You're welcome?"

"It isn't just that. You're like the glue that keeps us all together. Without you, I doubt Yang would've ever gotten so close to Pyrrha, Weiss would probably still be as frigid as she was when we first met her, Blake would never have come out of her shell, I never would have met Penny, or been friends with anyone…"

Jaune stayed silent as he listened.

"Torchwick would probably be ahead of us, the White Fang would've killed Blake, the bad guys would be winning… if it wasn't for you. So, thanks."

Jaune smiled. "No problem, Ruby. I think I owe you thanks, too. All of you. My team, yours, you've all helped me too. There's no way I would've made it this far without you guys."

The two fell into silence as their feet kept time with the music, slowly swaying about the room.

Ruby once again initiated a conversation. "So… sorry about springing that whole 'we're dating' thing on you. We should probably talk about that."

At that, Jaune chuckled. "Well, I can't say I'm all that experienced in the area."

"I'm not good at it either!" She exclaimed exasperatedly. "I barely know how we know if we are or not!"

That last one threw Jaune for a loop, but to his credit he recovered quickly. "I mean, it doesn't have to be complicated if we don't make it complicated. We kind of get to decide how it works, there's no instruction manual or handbook, really."

"Gods what I wouldn't give for an instruction manual. Step by step guides are so much easier."

At that, Jaune couldn't help but agree. "Maybe I'm just used to figuring things out on the fly now, thanks to my semblance. I wish it had come with a guide."

"Man, life would be so much easier with a guide. Though it would kind of defeat the purpose, wouldn't it," Ruby mused.

A few seconds passed before Ruby once again spoke up. "So, what, we just decide we're dating? We just go 'we're dating' and suddenly we're dating? Is that really how it works?"

Jaune shrugged. "I guess?"

Ruby seemed content with that answer. "Well, that makes this easier than I thought. I was kinda worried that there were like special things we had to do, or like a checklist? I don't know why I thought there was a checklist."

They fell back into relaxed silence again, before the music changed to something of a faster tempo, and the two decided to retire back to the table.

"Hey Jaune, hey Ruby. How are you enjoying the dance?" Blake asked, once they neared their seats.

The two shared a glance.

"I'm having more fun than I'd expected, that's for sure," Ruby answered, taking her seat with a sigh of relief. "Though these stupid heels are killing me!"

Jaune took his seat next to her. "Yeah, I'm enjoying myself. How about you, Blake? Glad Weiss managed to convince you?"

Blake gave him a roll of her eyes. "Don't think I don't know you put her up to it, Jaune. But, I'm glad I came. It's nice to take a break, I'd forgotten what it was like to not be constantly worried."

Jaune shook his head. "I told Weiss to help you out and help you relax, but I never told her what to do specifically. It was more of a 'take care of your partner' sort of thing."

"Speaking of Weiss, where is everyone's favourite Ice Queen?" Ruby asked.

"She's getting drinks with Ren and Nora. I told them to get you two some, too, so don't worry."

Jaune nodded his thanks. "So, what about Yang and Pyrrha?"

"Pyrrha decided to call it a night early, she headed back to our dorm. Yang's out on the balcony, she asked me to tell you to meet her out there."

Jaune couldn't help but feel somewhat nervous at that. "I probably shouldn't keep her waiting."

Ruby gave Jaune a confident nod. "I'm probably going to go get some air. Don't take too long."

Jaune could feel the nervousness creep up his spine. He had a bad feeling about this talk.

* * *

The balcony was barren, aside from the single occupant, who stood gazing over the nightlife that Vale promised, the light illuminating the hazy fog that rose over the city.

"Hey, Yang, I thought you wanted to dance?"

Yang turned to face him, her white dress contrasting against the dark stone the balcony was constructed from, almost giving her some kind of ethereal glow.

"I do. But you know me better than that. When I say dance, you know exactly what I mean."

Jaune raised his guard in time for Yang's unarmed fist to strike his arm, sending him skidding to the side. "Gods, Yang? Really? I can't get one night to relax?"

"Not if you plan on dating my sister."

Jaune ducked a haymaker that carved through the air. "Technically, she planned on dating me?"

He quickly sidestepped a high-heeled kick that, had it hit, would've carved a pretty hefty chunk out of his flesh, at least, if his Aura was down.

"Okay, not in a joking mood, got it. Is there a point you want to make, here, because you know you can't beat me."

A fist coated in yellow flame missed his face by mere millimeters.

"Gotcha, no talking, just fighting. I can do that."

Yang's fist swung in once more, and Jaune caught it by the wrist, wrenching her out of place, taking advantage of her non-existent guard and driving her to the floor.

"I can't tell if you've had too much to drink, or this is how you are normally when Ruby is involved."

Yang struggled underneath his knee, which he was currently using to pin the small of her back to the ground. "Fuck you."

Jaune shrugged. "That isn't as much of an answer as you think it is, Yang. If I let you go, are you going to sit still and talk this through?"

Yang struggled under his pin before going slack. "Mmph. Fine."

Jaune stood up, releasing Yang, who stood up, brushing her mangled dress as best she could. "Ruined my dress."

Jaune shrugged a second time. "Technically, you ruined it yourself."

Jaune then realised that Yang was going to need some prompting. "So, what's wrong? Why'd you pick a fight?"

Yang shrugged this time. "I figured I was obligated to."

"What?"

Yang laughed at Jaune's reaction. "I've got to play the whole protective big sister role, Jaune, the problem is is that we're friends, and I can't beat you in a fight. I'm no longer intimidating."

"You see, the former is a reason why you don't need to pick a fight, and the latter is why you shouldn't have picked a fight."

Yang shook her head. "Before you say anything else, I know Ruby's the one that started the relationship. I get that, I didn't expect it, sure, but I get it. See, that's the problem."

Jaune didn't have anything to say to that.

"It's not that I don't trust her, it's that I know her. Ruby rushes into things because she thinks it's the right thing to do, and sometimes it gets her hurt. I don't want Ruby to rush into a relationship with the first person she suspects might share the feelings she has, only to ruin the friendship for herself. I want you to know that."

Jaune nodded solemnly. "You want me to be her friend first."

Yang nodded. "Yeah. I don't think you're the kind of person to take advantage of her, gods know you and Ren are the best guys I've ever known, but still… I just want to make sure. I want you to know that if you do hurt her, I don't care how powerful you are, I will make it my life's work to hurt you."

Jaune smiled at that. "I'll hold you to that."

As Jaune went to leave, he stopped, turning back to face the blonde. "You let me win, didn't you."

Yang snorted. "I don't think I was even trying. I'm going to head back to the dorms, maybe hang out with Pyrrha. Take care of Ruby."

Jaune nodded. "Of course."

* * *

Jaune didn't know where Ruby had gone. ' _She said she was just going to get some air. Where could she have-'_

His thoughts were cut off abruptly as he remembered that he was a literal video game character with magic powers.

"Alcmena, find Ruby!" Jaune spoke aloud, the Stymphalian-soul appearing in the air above him, quickly gaining height.

It only took a few moments before Jaune, through Alcmena's eyes, spotted Ruby, entering the CCT. A strange enough event on its own, though it was not alone.

Surrounding the CCT were barely hidden bodies, dressed in Atlesian Military armor.

That didn't bode well, and was what most likely had drawn Ruby's attention. Unless Ruby had secretly turned evil and killed a bunch of soldiers, which he doubted very much, and was disappointed in himself for even thinking that.

He was already close to the CCT, and he quickly burst through the door, only to roll to the side as a high-caliber bullet whizzed past his head.

"Sorry Jaune!" Ruby shouted, the still smoking barrel of Crescent Rose in its smaller form pointed away from him. "You scared me!"

Jaune clambered to his feet, waving it off. "It's fine. Not like I'd have died."

Ruby turned, placing her index and middle fingers against a collapsed soldier's neck. "Unlike these guys. They're alive, but barely."

"Damn. I'll send Alcmena to get the General, or Ozpin, he'll know what it means."

Alcmena heard the telepathic order and quickly set about doing as Jaune had bid, before his eyes ceased their glow. "We should check the top floor."

Ruby was already in the elevator, waiting for him.

"Oh, right."

He quickly joined her in the elevator, and Ruby hit the button for the top floor, wobbling slightly as he balance decided to throw her off as the elevator departed from the ground floor.

"Might want to take those off. Fighting in them might not be the best idea," Jaune said, and Ruby nodded, leaning down and removing them, tossing them to the side.

Jaune pooled Mana into his fists as Ruby rechambered a round, and the elevator doors gave their telltale ding.

The room was empty.

"Well, that was a bit of a letdown," Jaune remarked.

Then the entirety of the CCT blew up.

* * *

 **Once again, I apologise for this chapter being late. Turns out, with no experience in writing relationships, it can way more difficult than I had expected. I rewrote a few paragraphs easily ten times, just because I wasn't happy with them. I realised that I wasn't ever going to be fully happy with them, and put the best version in.**

 **Next chapter I'll talk about the CCT explosion in an AN, because I feel like I need to explain my decision, but that can wait. Onto reviews!**

 **SirenAtlantica: I feel like Greek Fire doesn't get enough love. They've been training together for so long that their competitive natures might've gotten the best of them! (** **Fun fact: the ship name for Pyrrha/Blake is either Purrha or Pussy Magnet. I'm not sure how to feel about this, but I laughed aloud regardless. Don't know why that relates to what you said, I just had to remind myself what Yang/Pyrrha was and saw it).**

 **EmptySpot: Thanks! I spent a while trying to get it all to flow naturally, or at least as natural as possible, and I feel like I accomplished what I set out to. Glad you liked it!**

 **dirtrevor: I hope I subverted your expectations :P (Now I want Mexican for dinner, I'd kill for a taco right now).**

 **chirotiando: It was expected to be an out-of-nowhere kind of 'mistake', where Pyrrha gets carried away, but I get what you're saying. I should probably hit at stuff a little clearer next time!**

 **Adro-Sama: If only canon-Pyrrha was so bold.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Just you wait, I have a whole thing planned. It's taken some time to assemble, no pun intended, and that'll make sense later on down the track. That title idea, Armsmaster, is definitely a better name than Armory, but the title has existed for a little while now. At least, a similar title. Maybe Armory and Armsmaster are two different titles, who knows?**

 **DamascusDalek: At least it isn't Bumblebee. (I'm kidding everyone please don't kill me).**

 **drannaka: I... uh... wouldn't phrase it like that... but, yeah? I guess?**

 **DuplicateUserName: Ooh, late-game speculation. I love what you've said, but I do actually have a few ideas as to that. The plan is for the System to be something... older. I did say eons, after all.**

 **Dragon Bone Z: Nailed it. If that puts you off, I'm sorry, but it won't really change all that much. I have been building towards Lancaster for some time now.**

 **Guest: Dungeons are more of a speculative concept in Systema rather than solid locations. For example, Mountain Glenn would be classified as a dungeon, but isn't neccesarily a typical dungeon. Just a locale overrun by Grimm. As for Grimm Bosses, what do you think the Shai-Hulud is! It's a prequel to bigger, badder bosses! Well, maybe not bigger. We'll see.**

 **Zathol: Your reviews bring me life. Yeah, a little flame-retardant foreshadowing, but not in the way I think everyone was expecting! As for screwing up her plans... you'll have to wait and see!**

 **Hatelove731: I'm glad to have had you onboard, mate! The Systema ride isn't close to being finished yet!**

 **Kamen Rider Extreme: No, it wasn't necessary, but since when does Weiss only do what's necessary?**

 **razmire: Neither did Pyrrha :P**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: You saw straight through me like I was a panel of transparent glass and you were standing there, looking through the panel of transparent glass. Cheeky bugger.**

 **jedimasterb10: Oui. Mon frere. Baguette. Dix Neuf. I did six years of French in school. Why can't I remember any of it. What were we talking about? (Yeah, I figured why not celebrate RWBY by choosing some of the rarer pairs and sticking them at the forefront?)**

 **Kane: When I inevitably get around to working on the Bound Souls in more depth and detail, I'll consider taking you up on your offer, but it really depends on how or what I do about them. Sure, I can add a ton of depth, but that does end up taking away a lot of the focus of everything else, and whilst Bound Souls are some of my favourite things about Systema, I can't neglect anything else. They will be fleshed out, don't get me wrong, we've already seen some development with them, and if I have a full idea there may or may not be a spin-off chapter with Zwei and Cadejo causing chaos.**

 **armentho: Ooh, you always have good ideas sprinkled in like the jam to a doughnut. All good, but sometimes you get that really tasty bit that makes it all worth it. I feel like I've lost track of this metaphor.**

 **lordrednight: I'm glad you liked it!**

 **Redripper666: Yes. I understand exactly what you said. Uh... I'll fix it? I think?**

 **These reviews have gotten a bit long, huh. Oops.**

 **I'm on twitter fat_flying and Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale, I'd love if it you felt like supporting me and my writing! Don't feel like you have to, though, then it just feels like I'm begging, and that's awkward, and... where was I?**

 **Ah, right, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	37. Burning Sensations

**Oops, late again. My bad. Sorry about that, especially considering the cliffhanger. Here's the chapter!**

* * *

Just when everything had been going smoothly, General James Ironwood let down his guard.

It was a single moment, a lapse in judgement, where he felt safe. Where he forgot about the unending assailants that threatened the stability of Remnant, where he lost himself in nostalgia, remembering what it had been like, all those years ago.

A moment where he got to enjoy a dance with an old flame, speak with a close friend about things that weren't work. Watch a surrogate daughter enjoy herself.

Then, like it always was and always would be, he was violently reminded of the horror that Remnant held within its shadows.

And he'd spilled punch down his front. Which was not something he appreciated, the fabric was… difficult… to get dry cleaned. Partly because it was an uncooperative material, and partly because it was actually comprised of a fabric blend that was a military secret.

The ground had shaken as if a localized earthquake had decided to join the dance, and it was accompanied by a cacophonous bang that resounded across the campus and down into the city proper.

All of this happened, and Ironwood played it back in his mind as he drew his revolver, his two security guards flanking him, hands on their weapons, heads on a swivel as they kept their eyes out for potential threats.

Of course, Ironwood's security was more of a formality than anything else. Sure, they were top notch SMO operatives, a part of the MP branch, but they were still soldiers. To them, Ironwood was a legend.

"Brownes, get me a sitrep, get in touch with the Daedalus. I want to know exactly what just happened. Mozambique, link up with Beacon's staff, help out where you're needed."

Brownes and Mozambique quickly saluted, not arguing the General's orders and doubling their pace, heading for their destinations.

It was at this point that Ironwood rounded the corner, and saw the complete lack of towering CCT. Which was an odd occurrence. It was usually there at this time of evening.

It wasn't normally replaced with smoking, flaming rubble, wounded soldiers, and the armored corpses of his fallen men.

The General didn't even give a single thought to anything but rushing in and starting to drag his men out of the wreckage, pulling them clear, as another chunk of tower teetered ever closer to falling, structural damage abound, the most obvious of its forms being the cracks that ran through the concrete and the shattered, splintered and bent rebar that poked every which way.

It didn't look good.

Brownes was the first back to report, though his report was given as he too began dragging wounded out of the rubble as best he could. "General, the Daedalus reports nothing out of the ordinary! No outside interference, no Grimm!"

Ironwood swore under his breath. This meant it was an internal job. Good news, Vale wasn't at war publicly.

Bad news, this was either White Fang, or something worse, and Vale's shadow war had just kicked up a notch.

"General, sir!"

Ironwood looked up, and let out a sigh of relief as he saw Mozambique escorting Glynda towards him.

"Glynda, I need you deeper, clearing rubble! There might be more men buried under there!"

Goodwitch only gave him a nod as she began clearing a path, pushing rubble up and back over her head, neatly placing it in a pile out of the way. There was too much damage for her to repair, she couldn't place flaming concrete powder back.

Three large chunks of tower crumbled and were pushed sideways, momentarily distracting the vice-headmistress. "Was that you, Glynda?"

A silent shake of her head had the General aim his revolver in the general direction the rubble had come from.

Then a hole in the rubble pushed itself open, and a man carrying an unconscious red-cloaked girl stepped out, three injured soldiers laid on the ground behind him.

Jaune Arc, skin having been effectively cooked off the bone, stepped out of the rubble, handed Ruby to Brownes, and stepped back in, hefting a soldier into a carry and stepping out.

Ironwood had seen many injuries in his lifetime, his own being some of the most severe yet non-lethal, but this was different. Arc was quite literally missing all the flesh and, well, anything but bone on the left of his face. Even his eyeball had liquefied, which was never a pleasant thing to think about.

So it was somewhat strange to watch ribbons of flesh stretched out and wrapped parts, slowly but surely repairing the damage.

The second injured soldier was passed to Mozambique, who took the man and quickly set about triage, but Jaune was still going, retrieving the third.

Jaune barely even paid attention to Goodwitch as he passed the third soldier to her, before he walked up to Ironwood.

"No- One- Left…" He ground out, sounding like his throat was made of sandpaper. Obviously, it had cooked as well.

Then the boy sat down, rubble forming a seat beneath his hand.

Ironwood wasn't sure what to say.

At least his suit was mostly intact?

* * *

He'd only had moments to make a decision. One moment he was doing his typical 'I'm-concerned-but-disguising-it-with-bad-humour' conversationalism, and the next a wall of fire was headed towards the two of them.

And it wasn't like he'd expected it to happen, either. He wasn't prepared for a bomb to go off in front of him.

A rapid cast of _Mana Field_ had half-conjured the dome, and even if he had enough time for a full cast it wouldn't have protected either of them much better, because the sheer power of the shockwave shattered it, and the two of them were thrown into the back of the elevator as a wave of flame hit.

Ruby was honestly lucky that she'd been basically slammed into the wall and Jaune had been slammed into her, because if it wasn't for that she would've received the worst of the heat. As it was both of them were left smoking, flesh cooked and third-degree burns across their bodies.

And neither of them had Aura, which had shattered the moment the shockwave had hit them.

All in all, not looking good.

Jaune was conscious, at least, even if quite literally every second was pure unadulterated agony. At the very least Ruby was unconscious so she couldn't feel what it was like to be inside an elevator as the building crumbled underneath them, whilst their flesh went from raw to rare to well-done in a matter of nanoseconds.

Then they had to contend with the rubble burying them in a vaguely elevator-shaped coffin, powdered concrete making the air even harder to breath, which was only compounded on by the smoke.

All in all, not a great situation.

Jaune let out a charred groan as his knees hit the ground, but he paid the agony no mind, crawling over to Ruby.

The girl was on the ground on her back, and though her red dress had survived her skin had not. Jaune was planning on fixing that.

' _Observe.'_

 **[Ruby Rose]**

 **[Level: 20]**

 **[HP: 29/170]**

 **[SP: 170/170]**

 **[MP: 0/0]**

 **[AP: 0/340]**

Jaune's remaining eye widened. Ruby had almost died.

 _System Mind_ had never kicked in faster as he immersed himself in his skill list.

There had to be something, anything he could do.

' _Stupid. No healing spells, no healing potions, did you really think no one would get hurt? Ozpin warned you, Jaune, you idiot!'_

Jaune had no doubt that if his tear ducts hadn't effectively vaporized, tears would be trailing down his face. His ineptitude had led them here, and in a way, this was his fault.

' _There has to be something I can use, something! A skill, healing, or maybe Aura?'_

Jaune knew that he was the only person alive that could regenerate the way he did. His HP equated directly to his body's physical form, but all the readouts he received when he _Observed_ anyone were more or less summarized forms, different from his own. Ruby's low HP value didn't mean that it would regenerate quickly like he did.

It meant that without Aura, she would die, and he didn't know how to directly give her HP.

What he could do was try to force his Aura into her, and hope that it boosted her own Aura enough. Like jump-starting a car, except with the physical manifestation of the soul.

Jaune placed a palm on her midsection and closed his eyes, willing his _Aura Control_ to push out his Aura, directing it into Ruby.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Auric Transfusion (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you have a unique understanding of how Aura works, including an intimate knowledge of how to transfer Aura from yourself into others who are compatible. Not all are compatible, and the target must have an awakened Aura for it to take effect. Some Aura is lost in the transfer, at an efficiency rate of 50%. This rate is improved as the skill levels._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

It was only after the notification appearing that Jaune realized the skill had stopped only seconds after starting.

Which was confusing. Was Ruby not compatible?

Jaune _Observed_ her again, but noticed that she had received a few points of Aura, so it wasn't that she wasn't compatible, which was a good thing.

Jaune's one good eye spotted his reflection in a shattered screen. ' _Oh. I'm out of AP.'_

At least Jaune did have a skill he could use to fix that, and so he closed his eyes, calming his mind.

 _Meditation_ activated promptly, and he felt his body begin to heal at an accelerated rate, as his regeneration rates doubled.

He let his AP regenerate for a few seconds, before focusing it all into Ruby, using _Auric Transfusion_ to push all of his AP into her body, which accepted it, red sparks flying as her Aura began to heal her injuries.

It was enough to keep her alive, enough to jumpstart her regeneration, so Jaune released the skill, standing with a wobble.

Now, it was time to break free of the rubble, which was a lot easier than it sounded. _Terrakinesis_ would make it an easy job, and the CCT wasn't the biggest building width-wise, so it wouldn't be too difficult to simply mould some of the rubble into walls, and create a solid tunnel.

It would make the cleanup a little bit more convoluted, but that wasn't the biggest issue Jaune was presented with.

' _Survivors. Those soldiers might've made it, though I don't know how many. I have to do something.'_

Jaune needed more new skills to deal with what was effectively a significant problem. ' _How do I see who's still alive?'_

Jaune pushed what little Aura he had into his one working eye, and was rewarded with another skill.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Soul Sight (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can infuse your eyes with Aura, giving you the ability to see Aura. The dimmer the Aura, the lower the total amount. Can see inactive Aura. Costs 5 MP/s._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

At least Jaune had the Mana to maintain it, though it would mean he would have to toggle it in order to use _Terrakinesis_.

Jaune took a glance around with _Soul Sight_ and saw only three faint glows, human-shaped, all within the rubble. He cracked his knuckles, which hurt way more than he was willing to admit, and set about clearing a path to them.

Despite the fact that he felt like he'd been char-grilled.

' _I hope this heals quick.'_

* * *

Ruby was in the infirmary, still unconscious, which Jaune was grateful for. He wouldn't want her to feel what it was like to spend too long in an oven. He'd fully healed, by now, but he'd actually had to shed the cooked skin as his semblance replaced it, which had been an experience that he never wanted to repeat.

It just so happened that he'd done that in front of the General, who looked vaguely discomforted by the revelation. Credit to the man, he hadn't seemed shocked that Jaune was healing, so his claims to be aware of the System weren't unfounded.

Speaking of the General, he was standing beside the Headmaster, the two of them sharing a glance before turning back to Jaune, who was sat in a chair on the opposite side of Ozpin's desk in the man's office, waiting for their response.

"So, you decided to investigate instead of reporting it, and when you reached the top floor, the elevator door opened and a bomb went off?" Ironwood asked, his stare still intense.

Jaune nodded. "If I had to guess, it was rigged to blow the moment the doors opened."

Ironwood nodded. "That would make sense. Why, though? Who could have the motivation to blow up the CCT? Especially now, with the Daedalus above Vale. It just means that Vale has to temporarily rely on Atlas for inter-kingdom communications."

"Perhaps it was not meant as a direct attempt to disrupt communications, but as an assassination attempt? It would not be as strange when you consider that the top floor is highly secure, and only people with permission are allowed on the top floor. James, had you have been the one to notice your soldiers on the ground, you would've been on alert, and quickly made your way to the top floor. Perhaps the bomb was meant for you?" Ozpin pointed out, and Ironwood nodded along, face turning pensive.

"If so, our foes are becoming emboldened. We cannot allow something like this to happen again. I'll be tripling security, we can't let them do whatever they feel without consequences."

"Are you sure that is the wisest decision, James?" Ozpin asked, sipping from his mug. "There may be repercussions to increasing your force size in Vale so dramatically."

Ironwood shook his head. "It isn't as if there is no precedent. I can speak with Vale's council, see if I can negotiate to maintain security as a part of the Vytal Festival."

Ozpin remained silent, most likely considering his options. "Of course, James." The man turned to face Jaune, looking him in the eyes, which had thankfully repaired themselves.

"Mr Arc, you have had a very long night, and I imagine that you would be more than willing to retire to your dorm for some well-deserved rest. I would just like to ask one question before you go."

Jaune nodded.

"Do you still wish to take part in the General's operation?"

Jaune took a deep breath.

"Yes, sir. We owe it to Vale to help out whenever we can, it's our job."

Ozpin nodded, and turned to Ironwood.

"Good to hear, Arc, because we'll be ready to depart in two days. We can't delay this, even with the current circumstances as they are."

Jaune winced internally, but nodded externally, standing from the seat and making his way out of the office and into the elevator, delicately pressing the button for the ground floor despite knowing that there was no chance of there being another bomb.

' _Man, saying it and accepting it are two different things.'_

* * *

"Did it work, ma'am?"

Professor Aurum's office was dark, lit only by a dim lamp in the corner.

"Yes. It appears to have gone off without a hitch, though the casualty rate was far lower than expected. You did well, Emerald. You too, Mercury."

Emerald and Mercury, stood next to each other, remained silent, but Cinder could tell that they had perked up somewhat at her rare compliment.

"So, we have access?" Mercury asked.

"Ironwood did exactly as expected, and all of Vale's traffic is now running through their destroyer. We have complete access to every single system that passes through the Daedalus," Cinder explained. "It went according to plan, Mercury, you needn't worry."

"Now what, ma'am?" Emerald asked, shifting in the dim light.

"Now, Emerald, we wait. Roman should be finished soon, if all continues as planned, and then our moment will present itself."

* * *

Jaune wasn't angry often. He was rarely maddened, and tonight was proving to be a very different affair from what he had expected.

The rise and the fall, he reasoned. Good and bad, Karma, whatever they wanted to call it. It didn't really matter what it was called, it sucked.

And, for once, it wasn't his fault. It didn't have anything to do with his semblance, so it wasn't something he was responsible for, but at the same time, it meant there wasn't anything he could really do.

It was nearly four in the morning at this point, and the shattered moon offered barely any light, shrouded as it was by the dark clouds that passed through the sky with nary a thought for those who stood beneath them.

It didn't matter all that much to Jaune, _Candlelight_ providing more than enough light for the area he was working in.

As for what he was working on, well… that was a little more difficult to describe.

Ever since he used _Terrakinesis_ to carve a staircase down the cliffside, he'd entertained a few ideas in the back of his head.

Nostalgic, childish ideas, ones that he didn't really see all that much use for, until tonight.

Well, he still couldn't see all that much use for them, but he was angry, and he needed something precise to take his mind off of what had happened. It was always harder to stay angry when you were working on something precise.

The Beacon Cliffs were solid stone, made of what Jaune assumed was some kind of limestone, and it was remarkably easy to shape with _Terrakinesis_ , if a bit slow. That was fine. He wasn't planning on sleeping, and even if he was he doubt he could.

Jaune allowed his control to push the stone, carving a hole in the wall, evening it out to be much neater than he was used too.

It took shape with time, becoming square, or rectangular if you took the depth into account, as he tunnelled into the cliffside, widening it out until it took a shape he was happy with.

Okay, yes, he was caving in to the childish idea of making a secret base in the cliffside.

It was for a good reason, a secret place to train some more… obvious skills, like Alchemy, and other things that didn't look like Aura manipulation.

It was also a place where AWBN and RRYN could relax, now that the school appeared to be no longer safe.

They'd set off a bomb in the CCT, and Ozpin had no idea who did it! Jaune had a feeling Blake would have a good idea, but she was asleep, and as far as Jaune was aware she and Weiss had retired before the bomb had gone off. His scroll hadn't been messaged, so he assumed she was still in the dark about it.

He'd let them know in the morning. At least Yang knew what had happened, and Pyrrha had found out by proxy. As far as Jaune knew, she was still sitting next to her sister, waiting for her to regain consciousness.

The very thought of Ruby sent a spark of anger through his body, and the hallway he'd been shaping shuddered as a crack ran through the center, nearly splitting it in half.

He controlled his breathing, taking one deep inhalation followed by a long exhalation, and repeating that method for at least half a minute. It succeeded in calming him down, and he resumed his work, quickly repairing the accidental damage.

He didn't need to make it massive, like some kind of underground maze that stretched for miles. He was trying to make a covered room to put some equipment in, not a dungeon.

Of course, Jaune didn't quite know exactly what kind of equipment he would end up needing, and the size of whatever future equipment would be, so at this point, he was kind of winging it, as he carved a door frame into the side of the hallway, pushing through and beginning to shape a room.

Less than two days until they were going on a mission to kill the giant worm Grimm. Jaune had that lurking in the back of his head too, and honestly, Jaune was worried.

He wasn't prepared. Every time he thought he was, he was rapidly dissuaded of that idea, usually through some violent, dangerous means.

He had a plan for tonight, though it was technically this morning. A simple, two step plan that was guaranteed to help.

First, he was going to finish constructing the little hideaway.

Second, he was going to go find some Grimm, and take out all his frustration and anger on them. It wouldn't be all that difficult, either, considering how much negativity he had no doubt he was radiating.

Jaune had finished widening out the room, having reinforced the walls by compacting the earth into far denser limestone than it had been before. That was the point he decided he'd had enough, and he stepped outside into the brisk air.

The sun was just barely peeking over the horizon, the milky orange giving the world a tint he felt it didn't deserve. At least rain, or even just overcast weather would suit his mood.

Of course, the warm light in the sky had the added benefit of making it easier for Jaune to spot the incoming airborne Grimm that were headed his way, a swarm of smaller Nevermore bearing down on him.

Jaune didn't even bother with his weapons. He had a perfectly good set of _Mana Arrows_ to pierce the avian menaces.

Jaune's face turned downright vicious.

* * *

"Sir, we're ready for departure. Corvettes' Icarus and Iapyx are ready to take over communication regulation, and R&D have finished the prototypes."

A nod answered the soldier. "Thank you, Brownes. Is Bison's squad ready for the operation?"

"Yes sir. His squad is standing by. He mentioned that the council is using this as a test run for some new gear, too, sir."

Ironwood nodded once more. "I'll let Ozpin know we're ready to depart. Thank you, Brownes."

As Brownes left the room, Ironwood swiveled in his chair, staring out over Vale from his office aboard the Daedalus.

A new day was dawning for Vale, and for Remnant as a whole. A new dawn for Atlas, too. Gone were the days of their overbearing status as the 'bad guys'.

General James Ironwood would lead Atlas into a new age of heroes.

* * *

 **Ironwood is a difficult character to write, surprisingly. In other news, this chapter was really hard to write, turns out I'm just shit at chapters that connect between events. Who knew.**

 **Now, let me move onto reviews!**

 **typhonyx: Relaxed? We'd better fix that!**

 **lordrednight: Thanks, I appreciate that. I do want to stick to the weekly schedule, if only for the fact that Systema is the only thing I've ever actually managed to stick to a deadline for. I'm just glad to see I won't have people up in arms if I do happen to miss a week, like last week.**

 **jedimasterb10: I mean, if you consider most people alive marginally better, then tadah?**

 **armentho: Surprisingly enough, and this may come as a surprise to most, but I'm not the most charismatic of people. A shocking revelation, I know. However, when it comes to Charisma in Systema, I have a number of implementations that, unfortunately, do not include peaceful surrender as of this moment. I did, however, write a script for vendor sale prices, which are affected by Charisma. That was a fun evening.**

 **Cool Anon: That's fine, at least you realised now. I was glad to have you whilst I did, and I hope you find something more to your taste. Same goes for anyone else who may feel the same.**

 **hirshja: I hope that I alleviated your concerns with this chapter. Technically, a worm, which is what I assume the virus Cinder uses is, would infiltrate the entire network, and the explosion serves to prevent any detection at it's insertion point. Industrial espionage disguised as an assassination attempt.**

 **THE L0NE WANDERER: Well, ain't that a coinkydink. I'd already written Ruby's Observe stats and level before you made this review, so you were thinking what I was thinking. I do have stats for all of AWBNRRYN, so that's all good. They level, too, just slower.**

 **And that about does it for reviews this week, shorter replies and such but that's just because I feel like this chapter needs to be out sooner rather than later, and also it's Good Friday and I want to relax, maybe play something different.**

 **I have a twitter fat_flying, and a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale, if you want to contact me or support me, I'm there!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	38. Training Montage Number 1

**Less than a day late this time, so I'm working back to where I normally am. But hey, at least it's a longer-than-usual chapter? Slightly?**

* * *

The door was the most imposing thing Jaune had ever seen.

He'd faced hundreds of Grimm at this point, fought terrorist and criminals, giant robots, all manner of enemies.

And yet this creamy-white metal door was far more intimidating.

Well, what it represented was intimidating. The door itself was just a door. Behind the door was the intimidating part.

Jaune was stalling. It seemed to be an effective strategy, until it wasn't, like with most strategies.

He should just knock on the door. That would be the easy thing to do. No, not easy.

The right thing to do, maybe, but not easy.

He didn't know why he was afraid. The bomb hadn't been his fault, hell, if he hadn't been there…

Jaune shook his head, avoiding that thought. That wasn't something he needed to dwell on any longer, it wasn't productive.

' _Bite the bullet, Jaune,'_ He thought, taking a step towards the door and reaching out his hand, not quite far enough to open it but far enough to look as if he was contemplating the concept of opening it.

The decision was promptly made for him as the door swung open, a somewhat startled blonde taking a half step forwards. "Oh! Jaune. Hey."

"Hey, Yang. How's Ruby?"

Yang stepped forward, but didn't close the door behind her, gesturing towards it. "Go find out for yourself. She was asking when you'd show up."

Jaune nodded even as his hand came up to scratch the back of his head. "Yeah, I'd… better go in."

With that eloquently put, Jaune stepped through, Yang closing the door behind him. "Hey Ruby. You doing okay?"

Ruby turned her head, ceasing her gaze out the infirmary window and looking towards the teen. "Yeah, I'm fine. Takes a little bit more than an explosion to put me down for the count, you know?"

Jaune took the empty seat next to her bed. "Yeah, I don't doubt that."

Ruby's expression turned somewhat more somber. "Don't lie to me. I know I wouldn't have survived without you. I wasn't thinking."

Jaune shook his head. "Neither of us were. We should've waited for a teacher, or the General. Someone more qualified for this sort of thing. I'm surprised we didn't learn this earlier on."

Ruby snorted. "We do tend to pick fights with people out of our league, don't we."

Jaune shrugged at that. "I don't know if Torchwick is out of our league. His minions, maybe, but…"

The two fell into a comfortable silence for a moment.

"Thanks, Jaune. For saving me. That could've gone really bad, would've, had you not been there."

Jaune shook his head once more. "I should've been able to prevent it, at least defend the two of us better. We barely made it out by the skin of our teeth. I should be better prepared than that."

"Jaune, it isn't like you could've expected a bomb. I get that you want to be better prepared, but don't blame yourself. You didn't plant the bomb, it isn't on you. It's on Torchwick, on the White Fang. Not you."

Jaune nodded slowly, but Ruby obviously wasn't satisfied with that, gripping his hand tightly with both of hers. "I want to hear you say it, Jaune."

Jaune took a deep breath, and looked into those argent eyes. "It wasn't my fault."

Ruby's smile made the lie worth it.

* * *

He'd left Ruby with her thoughts after some time, having informed her that they were still expected to go to Mountain Glenn the next day with the Atlesian Military.

That had put a damper on their moods, even if they hadn't exactly been the best and brightest as of late.

At least Ruby had Zwei to keep her company, the dog having somehow broken out of the dorm and breaking in to the infirmary. Jaune was honestly a little confused as to how the corgi seemed to simply appear in places, but it was a mystery for another day.

Today's mystery was, once again, what to do with his power, and more specifically, the limits.

He always seemed to start testing them, and then get sidetracked. It was becoming so common it would honestly appear that he was doing it deliberately.

He wasn't, things just kept happening.

Today was going to be entirely dedicated to the fight that he knew was approaching. Even with Atlas helping out, Jaune knew he'd be fighting. Whether he'd be fighting the Shai-Hulud, or the Grimm it attracted, that was a question he knew he wasn't going to get a clear-cut answer to, so the best solution would be a compromise.

First, it meant spending the stat points he'd been saving up until this point.

They weren't doing him any good sitting and doing nothing, and regardless of whatever 'efficient strategy' any person on the CCTnet said, it wasn't like losing a video game had any consequences.

This was reality, for him. No matter how much his semblance may try to dissuade him of that notion, it was real life.

So, strategies for late game meant nothing if he couldn't make it to the late game, or even the mid game.

He didn't even really know what constituted late or mid game. What was the max level, what were the max stats?

He didn't know. He couldn't know, there was no way to find out until he reached it.

So, Jaune decided that he wouldn't worry about it now. Take each goal one step at a time, preparing for them as they came up, not preparing for something that may never happen at the expense of things that were happening.

He had seventy-five points at his disposal, which, when you considered what they did, was no small feat. Even though it had taken him roughly a semester to build up, it was incredible the rate of growth. Hell, half a year ago he'd been a nothing, a nobody.

Jaune had a few options available to him. He could put ten points in every stat, with five left over to top things up, or he could dedicate his points to a few select stats.

Or he could put seventy-five points into one stat, but Jaune felt like that wasn't a smart idea. The moment he started to focus, something else would appear that would need something he wasn't able to do, and then that would defeat the entire purpose of him being a multi-tool.

He needed the variety, it was where his main advantage came from. There was nothing that was better than having a solution for every problem.

But, that only worked if he had actual solutions for all the problems. Otherwise, it was kind of a pointless endeavour, not to mention a waste of time.

Speaking of, he was currently wasting time.

Well, mental time. If that was a thing. He'd made his way back to the clearing like usual, and was contemplating adding some benches down here, maybe even a picnic table, but that could all wait.

Jaune decided then and there to put ten points into each stat. It seemed like a decent enough idea, but it was a decision.

He hadn't made enough decisions lately, he thought. There was no point having so many options if you didn't decide on one of them.

It was all too complicated. There was no formula, no one way about it.

Jaune hit the confirmation, and felt his body and mind flux as the effects took hold.

He couldn't say he felt smarter, really, or wiser, or more charismatic, or anything really, but he could tell his musculature had firmed up slightly.

It was less of a known thing and more of an implicit feeling, though. The more telling things were the notifications that popped up.

 **[For reaching 25 STR, you have been awarded the perk Steel Sinew.]**

 **[For reaching 25 AGI, you have been awarded the perk Lightning Reflexes.]**

 **[For reaching 25 CHA, you have been awarded the perk Salesman.]**

 **[Steel Sinew:** _Thanks to your increased Strength, your musculature is now denser and stronger, allowing you to hit harder and resist more knockback._ **]**

 **[Lightning Reflexes:** _Thanks to your increased Agility, you gain an increased reaction speed, allowing you to react to things faster._ **]**

 **[Salesman:** _Thanks to your increased Charisma, you can now get better prices for selling and buying at vendors._ **]**

New perks were always appreciated, Jaune knew. The first two were useful, too, and the third would come in handy if he ever actually bought or sold anything. Not that he really ever did, to be honest.

He probably should, for his _Crafting_ training. He imagined it would be rather costly, in the long run. At least _Alchemy_ would give him some useful things that might help solve future issues.

Health Potions were among the higher priorities on that list.

He didn't know what they took to make, though, but he was sure there had to be a way to find out.

Hopefully one that didn't require him delving back into Mountain Glenn and hoping to get lucky with the drops there.

That was beside the point, however, and speaking of points, he still had five to spend, if he so wished.

He did wish, too, at least to spend two points on evening out his LCK, an even twenty-five accompanied by another dinging notification as he was awarded with yet another perk.

 **[For reaching 25 LCK, you have been awarded the perk Lucky Looter.]**

 **[Lucky Looter:** _Thanks to your increased Luck, you now have a chance of getting rare loot when receiving drops._ **]**

Well, that was a nice perk. Useful too, it might even have a chance of answering his previous question.

The potion question, not the point spending question. Of which was still partially solved, as he had three points remaining.

Question was, did he save the leftovers, or use them now. Did it really matter?

Jaune shook his head to clear his mind, dismissing the screen. He'd save them, just in case. He may not have as big a buffer as he did only moments ago, but he had to say, all in all, it was worth it.

Another decision made, another issue he could put to rest for the time being. That only left him with quite literally every other issue to deal with.

Like the bomb. Or the Shai-Hulud he'd have to fight in a day or so. Or the fact that his very existence put those he cared about in the line of fire with a consistency that he despised.

And that no matter how hard he tried, they would always be in danger, because he couldn't get rid of his semblance, and the only true solution involved a varying amount of death.

Jaune could really only focus on limiting the casualties, rather than preventing them, and wasn't that a sobering thought. It was difficult to be enthused when everything good about the semblance came with a large helping of wanton death and destruction.

To think he hadn't even managed to kill a single one of the small Nevermore that had swarmed him before. Turns out, birds are rather maneuverable, and avoid incoming projectiles rather well.

Aerial enemies were still proving to be difficult for him to deal with, but the benefit of the Nevermore being so small was that they really couldn't do all that much damage. They couldn't manage to penetrate his _Mana Field_ and had promptly given up for some tastier, less defended prey.

Which indicated that they weren't a particularly high level, considering how weak his _Mana Field_ was in comparison with some of his other skills.

Then again, at level 19, it wasn't anything to scoff at. It was just that, you know, an entire bomb going off in his face was more than enough to make him seem weak in comparison.

He wasn't really sure how many people could have survived such an explosion, but he had to imagine he wasn't the only one out there. Technically, seeing as how Ruby hadn't died, he wasn't the only one, but that was, as he had pointed out, more of a technicality than anything else.

A technicality he was thankful for, of course, but a technicality nonetheless.

Regardless, he needed to improve. And wasn't that some kind of mantra now, with how often he repeated it.

This time, however, it wasn't a bad disguise for him experimenting with new skills. This was a full search-and-destroy style training mission.

It was time he finally accepted what his career entailed.

It was time to hunt.

* * *

Jaune had never been this deep into the Emerald Forest before. Even during the Initiation, they hadn't had to delve this deep, more that they'd worked their way back towards the cliff from being plunged into the forest.

Hells, earlier Jaune had stumbled across the crater he'd made, when he first been partnered with Pyrrha. That was pretty nostalgic, but it was also an indicator that he'd gone deeper than ever before.

And, even with all that, nothing. No Grimm had appeared. That was… frustrating. The one time he went looking for trouble and it refused to find him.

Then again, he was just wandering aimlessly. He had said he was going to hunt, so why was he not thinking like a Hunter?

Especially with the amount of tools he had at his disposal.

"Cadejo, Alcmena," Jaune spoke aloud, summoning the two out of his shadow. "Scout ahead, find some Grimm. Lure them to me."

The summons quickly began to follow his orders, Alcmena taking to the skies as Cadejo quickly vanished into the undergrowth.

All Jaune had to do now was prepare the area.

Jaune allowed his Mana to leak into the ground around him, and he pushed with it.

The noise it made was surprisingly quiet, considering he was effectively displacing the earth around him, pushing trees and plants aside like he was a walking, talking bulldozer.

It took a couple minutes of just straight demolition, in more or less of a physical and metaphorical sense, but soon he had created a clearing, vaguely reminiscent of the clearing he used for training, but much flatter, and with hardened earth beneath his feet.

Once the area was sparse of obstacles, Jaune began to pace the perimeter, an idea in his head.

He placed his hand against the ground and soon, an intricate sigil appeared as _Spell Sigil_ did it's work, engraving a spell into the ground.

In this instance, it was a _Gravity-Infused Mana Calamity_ , and he quickly began enscribing more of them, making a circle of them around the center of the clearing.

It cost a lot of Mana, so it wasn't quick, taking a few minutes before he'd managed to set them all up, but once he had, it seemed to be perfect timing.

A foreign and yet intimately familiar sense pricked in his brain, and he turned around, facing the direction the feeling was giving him. Not a second after Jaune turned, Cadejo burst from the undergrowth, quickly sliding to a halt behind Jaune, already growling, as a cluster of Boarbatusks followed him out, sliding to a halt in front of Jaune, stomping and snorting as they analysed the newest threat.

Jaune withdrew Crocea Mors, leaving the shield in its sheath form on his belt, and waited patiently.

The lead Boarbatusk, a Matriarch, decided it had waited long enough, and at it's behest the entire passel began their charge, curved tusks aimed straight at the blond teen.

Jaune quickly triggered the nearest Sigil, and in that moment, the once grounded swine suddenly found themselves no longer gaining momentum, instead drifting upwards, unable to move. One Boarbatusk, the Matriarch, found itself spinning end over end as it drifted closer to that lethal blade that was already closing in.

Crocea Mors, as sharp as it always was, cut through pitch black flesh with ease, like a hot knife through water, emerging on the other side of the Boarbatusk Matriarch with a spray of dark viscosity, having bisected the monster.

Jaune's other hand cast _Spinning Mana Bullet_ , and the rounds fired out with the power of whatever magic was behind them, carving small holes through the other floating Boarbatusks, leaving their corpses spinning until the _Gravity Infused Mana Calamity_ ran out, dropping the already fading bodies onto the hardened ground unceremoniously.

Jaune gave Crocea Mors a flick, cleaning it with a smooth motion, before stepping back to the center of the clearing.

Cadejo bounded off once more, off to fetch what would either be wave two or wave three.

Jaune felt his Mana recharge, full once more, and he felt a familiar sense once more, slightly different.

Jaune turned to face the direction, sword at the ready.

* * *

Cadejo looked at Jaune, the teen leaning against his sword, breathing heavily.

"That… was a lot… of work…" Jaune panted out, Cadejo looking on with a mix of sympathy and curiousness.

Alcmena's gaze was much more reminiscent of eye-rolling, though if she was actually capable of that Jaune was unsure.

Jaune was down to the last Grimm, a pathetic whimpering Beowolf missing a leg and both arms, yet still clinging to life.

Jaune barely paid it any attention as he bounced a _Mana Disc_ off its head, leaving the jaw as the only remaining attached part of its skull.

The disc landed back in his grasp within a moment, and he broke it beneath his fingers.

He waited a moment, and was rewarded with that oh-so-satisfying ding as a notification pinged.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 515,313 XP!]**

 **[You've reached Level 32! +5 Skill Points!]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

Jaune closed the notifications and withdrew his scroll from his pocket, checking the latest message that had buzzed whilst he was in the middle of a fight with the second-last Beowolf, reading it as he absentmindedly placed all the loot in his inventory without so much as a glance.

 _Headmaster wants to talk with AWBN and RRYN. -Weiss._

Jaune sent back a quick 'on my way' before pocketing his scroll and looking to the two of his three summons. "Race you?"

Cadejo let out a happy bark of agreement, and Alcmena de-summoned herself, which Jaune was not aware she could do. Huh.

Cadejo also had no concept of countdowns, and he took off, paws pounding the ground as he sped off.

Jaune, caught off guard by numerous things as he was, took off only a split-second later, thanks to his newly improved reaction time, and he _Sprinted_ after the Beowolf-summon, slowly gaining distance.

A quick cast of _Flash Step_ soon turned the tide, however, as Jaune shot forwards with every step, untroubled by the speed he was running at, well aware that Cadejo was straining to keep up, the wolf's tongue hanging out his mouth as he pushed each muscle to their fullest extent.

It was to no avail, as Jaune recast _Flash Step_ the exact moment it ran out, mid-stride, and he effectively left the summon in the dust, as trees and bushes shot past him like green blurs that barely registered to him, despite his increased awareness. There was only so much _Lightning Reflexes_ could do.

It took him next to no time at all to reach Beacon's cliffs, breaching the treeline into his clearing, his sense of direction only added to by his map, as he skidded to a stop, dust and dirt being kicked up in his wake.

Once the literal dust had cleared, he set out climbing the stairs, thankful that his stamina pool was so vast, seeing as he would've been absolutely knackered by the run, and having the staircase looming over him would've just been the icing on the proverbial cake. The cherry atop the proverbial sundae. The- he was running out of metaphors to use whilst climbing the stairs.

"There are only so many metaphors, Cadejo!" Jaune said aloud, Cadejo's panting indicating that the wolf had finally caught up.

Cadejo was unsure what a metaphor was, but he was just happy to have actually managed to make it to the cliffside with Jaune.

He was really just wasting time with his thoughts as he made his way back to the Headmaster's office, somewhere he'd been far too many times for his taste. He was hoping the man would spice it up once in a while, maybe get a succulent or something. That constant ticking would drive any lesser man insane.

Another buzz had him withdrawing his scroll once more, and he, once again, checked the new message.

 _We're by the Bullhead dock. The General is here too. -Weiss._

Ah, that wasn't great. That meant either they were departing, or something else had come up. Neither were options Jaune was particularly excited for.

Jaune redirected, his mood somewhat improved by the fact that he didn't have to go to the office, and that the dock was actually closer.

And, now that he mentioned it, he could see the dock, and his team, and RRYN, and the Headmaster, and the General, and even Professor Goodwitch.

Jaune gave his friends a cursory wave as he closed in, slowing his jog down to a walk, wiping the sweat from his brow.

Actually, he was really sweaty. A shame he didn't have time for a shower.

Oh how he missed his philosophical thinking sessions in the shower. Back when everything was so much simpler.

"And the final member arrives. Training, Jaune?" Ozpin asked, leaning against his cane, eyebrow quirking from above his mug.

Jaune nodded. "Out in the Emerald Forest, sir. Just killing some Grimm, blowing off some steam."

Ozpin gave the breathiest of chuckles. "Well, I hope you didn't blow off too much. You have quite a big responsibility ahead of all of you."

Ironwood took this as his chance to interject. "The operation is ready. A Bullhead will be here momentarily to pick us up, and deliver us to the Daedalus. Before we depart, are there any objections?"

Jaune had a few, but none of them were substantial enough for him to withdraw the entirety of AWBN and RRYN. He'd need a pretty good reason for that, and 'afraid of the consequences' was not a good enough reason.

"No? Good. Our ride is here, Hunters. Hop aboard."

The General's statement was punctuated with the sound of a Bullhead hovering in close, engines whining as it kept the rounded metal frame aloft.

Without ceremony, he simply took a step inside, using the edge of the now open side to haul himself up and stepping through, and Jaune shrugged, climbing inside, followed by the rest of the assembled group, minus Ozpin and Goodwitch.

The two members of Beacon's staff simply waved a goodbye to the departing students, as the Bullhead dragged itself further into the air. Well, Goodwitch waved, Ozpin seemed to gesture slightly with the mug in what may have been reminiscent of a cheers-ing motion. The idea was there, though, and everyone knew it was the thought that counted.

The door slid closed as Jaune turned to face the General. "So, sir, what are we going to be doing?"

Ironwood shook his head. "In due time, Arc. First, let me brief you on the Daedalus."

Jaune nodded, Ruby standing up from her seat and settling in to the empty one next to him, eyes focused solely on the cybernetic man that stood in front of them, one hand wrapped around a loop that dangled from a bar that ran along the frame of the vehicle.

"The Daedalus is the pride of the Atlesian Air Fleet," Ironwood began. "It is, for all intents and purposes, a floating fortress, equipped with the most advanced technological advents Atlas has to offer, including a fully equipped hangar, completely operational engineering and science divisions, and an entire mechanical division, where we store an entire army's worth of Atlesian Knights."

Jaune nodded along, understanding but not fully grasping what the General was saying, whilst Ruby looked like she was trying not to spontaneously combust.

"Aboard the Daedalus right now are four squads of soldiers, gearing themselves up for what will be known, from now on, as Operation Kingslayer. Operation Kingslayer has a few stages to its execution, but the most important part involves luring the Shai-Hulud to the surface of Mountain Glenn, where we can open fire with the Daedalus's main batteries. The killing it part of that is the easy part. It's the luring part that's the hard part."

Jaune continued to nod, before stopping. "How are we luring it?"

Ironwood brought out his scroll, projecting a three-dimensional rendering above it. "This is the Subsonic Tremor Activator, the STA, which the men have taken to calling a Spike. I'm told that, once activated and planted in the ground, the Spike releases a series of minor tremors that the Shai-Hulud will be drawn to. If we place a Spike at each corner of the area where we want to draw the Shai-Hulud, it should, in theory, emerge in the center."

"That all sounds simple, but why do you need us? If you can lure it that easily, what's the catch?" Jaune asked, and the General nodded.

"It sounds simple, but with most things of this scale, execution is a different story. The problem with the Spike is that the tremor isn't exactly discerning about what it lures. In a less populated area, we could feasibly handle this situation with minimal casualties, but in a place as densely populated as Mountain Glenn, we're looking at swarms that can overwhelm conventional gunfire. We need Hunters to deal with them, and considering we don't have the luxury of Atlesian Hunters, you all are our best bet."

"What happened to all of Vale's Hunters?" Ruby asked, still looking at the projection of the Spike.

"As of right now, there are three Hunters in Vale that are not currently on jobs. One is retired, one is critically injured, and one harbours a biting hatred for Atlas. So, we're scraping the bottom of the barrel so to speak, not that anyone would consider you bottom of the barrel in comparison to your peers."

Jaune felt the Bullhead shudder as it touched down, the loud whine of the engines winding off as the door slid open, letting a gust of wind in that blew his shaggy hair back.

Ironwood stepped out, soldiers saluting as he strode past, the faces of the students in his wake varying from amazement to shock, and even a touch of fear.

Jaune remained impassive, however, trying to balance out Ruby's consistent excitement with his newly acquired stoicism.

They walked through clean, white corridors, past various doors, all of which were unlabeled, until they reached a large elevator, the doors sliding closed behind them as they stepped in.

Soldiers saluted them as the doors slid open once more, the floor they'd reached obviously important, helmeted men and women with rifles lining the walls as less-armored men and women worked at terminals, and the General quickly stepped up to a raised dais.

"Navigation, are we ready to depart?" Ironwood asked.

"Yes sir. Helm is waiting on your order, sir."

"You have it, Helm. Let's get moving."

Jaune felt the very floor beneath him shake slightly as the engines spun further up their cycles, the very sky seeming to shift as the Daedalus began to shift from it's near-permanent position above Vale for the first time in some weeks.

"Communication has been passed to the Iapyx and the Icarus, sir. Daedalus is flying solo."

"Twenty minutes out, sir. Squads are getting prepped."

"Razorbacks are fueled and loaded, sir."

Ironwood nodded as the reports came in, and Jaune was glad to know he wasn't the only one of the eight of them that was stunned into silence.

"Brownes, you have the floor. I have a briefing to run," Ironwood said, stepping down from the dais and gesturing for RRYN and AWBN to follow as he lead them down a set of stairs at the front of the bridge, to a room that was more glass than floor, a desk sat in the middle.

All around them was sky, and it was only then that Jaune realised that this was the lowest point on the Daedalus, as looking down had him staring at the rooftops of Vale.

It was somewhat disconcerting, and Jaune had no doubt that that was exactly what Ironwood had wanted when he had the room constructed. It was a position of power, that much was certain.

This was the man's office, without a shadow of a doubt.

"Well, Hunters, welcome to the Daedalus."

* * *

 **That's how you do a reveal, Jaune. Learn from it, embrace it. Be the dramatic you always knew you could be!**

 **In all seriousness, I may be stroking my own ego a little, but I really like the Daedalus as a concept. A mobile fortress is always a cool thing.**

 **Next week we delve into Operation Kingslayer, and yes, that'll be a quest. I haven't forgotten about quests. Oh, and Jaune will do an inventory of his acquired loot, he was a little busy being summoned by the Ice Queen to do anything but scoop it all up. There are a few tasty treats in there! (Or will be when I finish the revamped loot tables :P)**

 **Now, reviews!**

 **armentho: All in all, I should mention, Jaune will be getting new weapons sooner or later, it really depends on the loot that he rolls. And, as your PM pointed out, you were right in regards to the Nevermore, and Mana Sight will be getting some use later on, don't worry. I have a few plans in mind for that.**

 **lordrednight: The lair has been contemplated over for some time, but it made sense to implement with his new crafting skill, and his newfound awareness of potential enemies within Beacon itself. Glad to know you think the connecting chapter wasn't so bad, too.**

 **Exiled Soul Nomad: I figured, at some point I had to make it a thing, hell, it's been a skill pretty much since I started all of this.**

 **Guest: Technically, Alcmena is a bird. So, sending Alcmena out to grab attention is a little different to actually going and finding a professor and telling them. Besides, Alcmena suddenly became background noise the moment the bomb went off, so her purpose was a little null and void.**

 **Farfikuger: I'm not entirely sure on the accuracy of that statement. I'm pretty sure they're two different kinds of rock?**

 **jedimasterb10: All he needs now is a lever-action shotgun. Which I really wanna give him. Terminator 2 best Terminator.**

 **typhonyx: Unfortunately, I had to make it a little bittersweet. Oh well, next time?**

 **DuplicateUserName: Shame about that. It does exist, it's just creating it requires a little more... finesse. And direct intent.**

 **dirtrevor: I actually don't have any medical skills planned at the moment. That's all going to be items, which he'll need to learn through Crafting. Fun, aren't I?**

 **csad21: As far as I understand what you're saying, and I could be misinterpreting it because at this point I've been awake and writing for nearly a full 24 hours, is that Jaune should wait to push more AP into Ruby, in order to heal her faster. The thing is, that HP doesn't heal without AP, and AP regens really, really slowly. In that scenario, it just isn't feasible to wait, but in other situations, I suppose that it would be better to wait. Quirks of learning the System, I guess? And Cinder, doing something dastardly? Why, she doesn't seem the type. She seems like the penultimate good guy.**

 **razmire: His only option, unfortunately, is HP potions, as far as he is aware. Which sucks.**

 **Guest: I once slept through a fire alarm, and I was sober, so... probably not as many as you'd think, especially with a spiked punch.**

 **Guest: I mean, this is fiction. It's all fiction. I'm not "pushing fetishes" as much as I am reveling in the freedom that is writing. If you have a problem with it, fine, but let's be honest, thinly-veiled homophobia will not be accepted here, and you'd best just leave now if that's the way you feel.**

 **D: Your name with my formatting makes a sad face. That is all.**

 **DylanTheDemon: I know this was a PM, but I felt it would be better to address it here. If Jaune does start killing enemies that aren't Grimm-based, something serious will have had to have happened. As it is now, there's no reason for Jaune to suddenly snap like that. He's focused on becoming a Hero, and that doesn't really mean murdering criminals, no matter how righteous it may sound. Later on, though, we'll have to see where the story takes us.**

 **And that about does it this week, I know I was late again, sorry about that. I have a twitter fat_flying and a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale, so if you wanna follow me or support me, please feel free to do so.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	39. Operation Kingslayer: First Phase

**I don't know what it was about this chapter, but god damn was it satisfying to write. Finishing it just felt... good. I don't really know how to describe it. Enjoy!**

* * *

"I'm not going to mince words, students, this is not going to be easy, or safe. You already understand the risks, I'm sure, but I want to make it absolutely clear."

The General was completely serious, that much was obvious, and from the way his gaze continued to shift back to Jaune, it was pretty clear he had something else to say.

"General, sir, both AWBN and RRYN are fully aware of everything I know about the System."

Ironwood seemed taken aback somewhat, but to his credit he recovered quickly. "Very well. Allow me to move on, and explain the plan in detail."

The military man gestured to his desk, a map of Mountain Glenn springing up from the depths, holographic in nature.

He quickly adjusted it, flattening the three-dimensional landscape into a flat street-map. "This is from out latest scans, but it shouldn't have changed. Now, these four points," the General began, pointing to the four glowing dots on the map, "are our spike locations. Each team will split into their partnerships, and be assigned a squad. You will descend, clear the area, plant the spike, and wait until the order is given to activate it. Once activated, you will defend the spike until the Shai-Hulud emerges, where you will be flown back up to the Daedalus as we engage. Is that understood?"

Ironwood received a chorus of nodding in response, and let out a slight, almost silent sigh, before moving on, dismissing the projected map. "Brownes will take you to your squads, so if there are no more questions…"

Jaune and Ruby looked to their respective teams, but it appeared that the clear-cut briefing was just that.

Ironwood gave them all a confirmatory nod, before stepping back up the stairs. "Then if you'd like to follow me, I can hand you over."

* * *

"So, we're babysitting? I thought we were on some kind of difficult mission, not keeping an eye on some kids."

Jaune winced at the less-than-stellar reception he and Pyrrha appeared to be receiving.

"Enough, Barnes. Angel 1, this is Jaune Arc and Pyrrha Nikos, your assigned Hunters. Arc, Nikos, this is Angel 1. I'll let them introduce themselves, I still have to show the rest of your crew around," Brownes said, giving Jaune and Pyrrha no room to retreat as he roughly pushed them forwards.

The two Hunters-In-Training looked about as awkward as they felt, until a burly man stood, stretching out a hand. "I'm Lieutenant Slate, Angel 1-Actual. Nice to meet ya."

Jaune took the massive hand in his own, feeling the bones rearranged themselves beneath the man's behemoth-like grip. "I'm Jaune. Nice to meet you too.

His hand released Jaune and gave his partner a more delicate shake. "So, let me introduce you to the rest of Angel. The asshole on the left is Corporal Barnes, Angel 1-5. The one who looks like she'd rather be deployed already is Corporal Liym, Angel 1-4. Angel 1-3, Corporal Strong, is over there, talking to our pilot, and Corporal First Class Argon, Angel 1-2, is currently getting our equipment sorted for the op."

Jaune and Pyrrha nodded a greeting to the gathered soldiers.

"I meant what I said, L-T. Did the wife leave and not take the kids?" Barnes asked, standing up from his seat on a crate, to his towering height of… shorter than both Jaune and Pyrrha.

Barnes seemed to realise that fact at the same time Liym did, her raucous laughter serving to diminish his threat even more.

"Ease off, Barnes. The General recommended them himself, so I reckon they can handle themselves. Besides, you telling me you don't recognize Mistral's champion in the flesh?" Slate said, Pyrrha playing up her polite public persona, giving the man a smile.

Barnes rolled his eyes. "Yeah, whatever. Scraggly here's who I'm worried about."

At this, Pyrrha let some of that persona slip. "Jaune is an excellent leader."

Jaune met his partner's eyes, shaking his head slightly.

Barnes whistled mockingly. "Oh, a leader? Did you draw straws? Maybe a game of Rock-Paper-Scissors?"

Jaune did a double take. "I'm sorry, what did you say? Did you just say Rock-Paper-Scissors?"

Barnes seemed taken aback. "Uh, yeah?"

Jaune shook his head disapprovingly. "It's Paper-Scissors-Rock. Not Rock-Paper-Scissors."

This only seemed to rile Barnes up. "What the hell are you smoking, kid? It's always been Rock-Paper-Scissors!"

Liym added to the atmosphere by continuing to laugh, struggling hard to prevent herself from falling off her seat on another crate.

"Seriously, I don't know how you guys do it in Atlas, but it's wrong. It's Paper-Scissors-Rock. No arguments."

"Alright then kid, wanna put your money where your mouth is? Atlas'll show you a thing or two, sparring! One on one!"

Slate raised an eyebrow at that. "You sure you wanna do that, Barnes?"

"Yeah I'm sure! I'll flatten his ass in one move!"

Slate sighed, before turning to the blond Huntsman-In-Training. "Don't break him. We need him for the op."

Jaune just nodded. "Sure. I'm guessing he won't settle down or follow orders if I don't, right?"

Slate gave a tired nod. "I've been dealing with this for years, now. Just shut him up and he'll fall in line right quick."

"C'mon coward!"

Jaune rolled his shoulders, quickly shedding his weapons as he stepped to the side, an open area on the metal floor seeming better than fighting right amongst the soldiers and crates.

Barnes followed suit, taking the top half of his armor and donning it, leaving the helmet behind.

Another heavy sigh followed Barnes as Slate stepped up. "I guess I'll officiate. I'm going to stop you when enough damage has been done, we still have a job to do."

More noise followed as more and more people stepped up to watch the coming entertainment.

Which also meant it drew the attention of his friends, too.

"You can do it Jaune!" Ruby cheered, jumping up and down.

"You've got this Jauney!" Nora cheered even louder, hammer held aloft above her head, Ren doing his best to prevent the ginger from getting involved.

"Ha. More kids, huh? Couldn't afford to hire the real deal?" Barnes spat, cracking his knuckles.

Jaune didn't bother with responding, standing relaxed.

"Alright. Start!" Slate shouted. No countdown, no preparation, just action, and that appeared to be what Barnes was used to, as he shot forward.

Jaune swiveled at the last second, sending the soldier off-balance, the teen's hand pressing against the soldier's back to push him away, gaining some distance.

This appeared to piss off Barnes, who turned around with a stumble and a snarl, and began running at Jaune again.

Jaune dodged again, Barnes' fist passing just millimeters away from the teen as he kneed the man in the chest, before darting backwards once more.

' _This isn't even really a fight. It's about intimidation,'_ Jaune realised, as Barnes panted, pacing back and forth, taking it slow for a change.

Jaune stood tall, using his height to his advantage. "This isn't even a fight. Stop complaining," He said, voice laced with _Intimidating Presence_ as he took a step forwards.

Callisto and Cadejo emerged from his shadow, one on his left, the other his right. Startled yells and guns were raised, but Jaune held up his hand, the two bound souls halting at his command.

"If you had Aura, maybe it'd be different, but you don't, and it isn't. Just shut up, sit down, and behave," Jaune continued, voice still laden with _Intimidating Presence_.

Barnes reacted in a way that Jaune hadn't expected. "Well, shit. You're probably right. I mean, damn."

The man stood to attention with a rueful smile. "But this was a pretty good way for you to reveal what you can do, you know? Now we know where you sit."

Jaune relaxed, a curious look on his face. "That was what, a test?"

Barnes shrugged. "Don't blame me, that's on the L-T."

Jaune turned to face Slate, who gave a half-hearted shrug as well. "I like to know where you're at, and Barnes is usually aggressive anyway."

"Hey!"

Slate ignored the interruption. "I can take reputation, but I ain't ever heard of you, so I wanted to check. Considering all that, you're definitely up to par, so to speak. I've had to work with a couple Mistralians in the past that thought they were hot shit, turned out they could barely work out which end of the sword was the sharp one."

"I was just surprised they didn't cark it," Liym said, kicking her legs back as she relaxed. "I lost forty Lien on that."

Pyrrha raised an eyebrow at that, something the newest member noticed as he walked over. "Yeah, that's why I always bet against her. She's got bad luck when it comes to bets."

"Shut it, Strong."

Strong laughed. "Hey, at least I'm not talking about the ship-wide strip poker tournament. That you lost. Really quickly."

Slate ignored his squad, gesturing to Cadejo and Callisto. "So, that's your semblance? Summoning?"

Jaune nodded. "Something like that."

The large man raised an eyebrow at that. "Huh. Well, they look friendly enough. Pretty easy to distinguish from regular Grimm, at least."

Callisto strode over, effectively slumping into a sitting position and stretching out, Slate giving her a tentative head-rub.

The bear let out a quiet roar of satisfaction, and Slate smiled, looking like some kind of proud grandfather.

"Careful, L-T, you might lose your status as grumpy old man if you keep that up!" Liym piped up, as she donned her armor. "Wouldn't want that, now would we?"

Slate's reply was drowned out as speakers blared on. "All units, approaching AO. Green in five."

And with that, it was as if a switch was flicked, Slate relenting and stepping back from Callisto, grabbing his helmet, placing it on his head. "Argon, get over here!"

Jaune turned to see a clean-shaven man jogging closer, a crate in his hands. "Sorry chief. Got the gear, though, Quartermaster wanted to have a disagreement."

Slate nodded. "Get ready, then. Arc, Nikos, this is my 2IC, Argon."

The introduction was brief, but Argon wasn't one to shirk a handshake, quickly greeting the two Hunters-In-Training, before he too donned his armor and helmet, as Slate opened the crate and began handing out various pieces of equipment.

As Liym took what looked to be a large shotgun, she let out a whistle. "Woah, L-T, what's the occasion? You never let me use the biggest one."

Slate gestured towards Jaune. "Ask them. According to the General's briefing, these two have seen the big beastie we're going after."

Jaune and Pyrrha shared a glance. ' _More than seen it, it ate a part of me.'_

"It's not something we can really hope to fight. It's just that the Grimm inside Mountain Glenn are much stronger than usual," Jaune mused. "Anything less than the best firepower and there's a pretty good chance we'll be overwhelmed."

Strong shrugged. "Way to motivate, kid."

Jaune dismissed Cadejo and Callisto, the two summons disappearing into smoke and merging back with his shadow. "I'm just saying it how it is."

Slate loaded a belt into his massive rifle, pulling back on the charging handle. "What are we expecting to see out there, Arc?"

"Beowolves, Ursa, Creeps, maybe some bigger Grimm like Deathstalkers or Nevermore. Hopefully not a Goliath, but we'll see."

Barnes seemed to choke on air. "Hopefully?"

Jaune shrugged. "Nearly died the last time I fought one, but I'm a little stronger now. With the amount of firepower we have, we should be able to kill one if we need to. I'm just saying I hope we don't have to, because that's a lot of ammo."

This time the interruption was much louder as a klaxon sounded off, the soldiers standing and slinging their weapons.

"This way you two," Slate said, gesturing to the two to follow him. "It's about to get windy up here."

Slate timed it perfectly, indicating years of experience as what Jaune had assumed to be a large wall slid open, buffeting all the contents of the hangar with wind that whipped his hair back, the sudden noise nearly deafening him.

"Come on! We're in Skyhawk!" Strong shouted over the wind, pointing to one of the large military aircraft that sat, engines warming.

Razorback was an apt name for the aircraft, sharp and angular as it was, a pair of stabilizing fins along the top, a particularly vicious-looking turret beneath the angled cockpit. Much like a Bullhead, however, it had doors on the side, and as Angel Squad clambered inside, Jaune and Pyrrha followed, gripping tightly to the metal railings.

Angel hooked themselves in, grabbing cables and hooking them to their armor, as Argon and Strong grabbed a door-mounted minigun each, opening a box on the side of the door and grabbing a belt of ammunition, feeding it into the guns.

"All set Skyhawk!" Slate called out, and the pilot of Skyhawk gave a thumbs-up from the cockpit.

"This is Skyhawk-Whiskey-Mike-Delta-Six-Six, departing."

A voice came over the internal comms of the Razorback. "Copy that Skyhawk-Whiskey-Mike-Delta-Six-Six, departure registered. Kick some ass for us out there, Angel."

And then Skyhawk fell.

* * *

Jaune felt his stomach lift inside his body as Skyhawk plummeted, engines roaring as they kicked in, the Razorback leveling out and steadying, cruising at a decent speed as they entered Mountain Glenn's airspace.

A quick cast of _Mana Sight_ meant that Jaune could see clearly, and the result of that meant that the sky was suddenly pockmarked with tiny yellow dots.

"Incoming!" Jaune shouted, and not a second too soon as small Nevermore began effectively suicide-bombing the Razorback, already overwhelming the auto-cannon on the front.

Yellow turned red as Jaune managed to _Observe_ one, and suddenly he realised that the swarm was simply growing bigger by the minute. "We're attracting a lot of them!"

Strong and Argon opened fire, the Hephaestus-M72's spitting hot Dust-rounds in a stream as they traced through the air, carving swaths of space between the feather-laden air, even as the Razorback's armor plating suffered dents and scratches.

Skyhawk was holding, though, and Jaune and Pyrrha used their shields to prevent any unwanted passengers from getting inside, and soon the Razorback passed low enough to stop the swarm from pursuing en masse, as the Daedalus's point-defense systems went live.

Jaune and Pyrrha watched in awe as the massive aircraft opened multiple panels, gigantic turrets sliding out and rotating.

Each barrel fired a beam of glowing blue energy, incinerating sections of the swarm at a time, Skyhawk only just managing to reach the minimum safe distance as another beam killed at least two hundred of the pursuing avian menaces.

"Woah," Jaune said involuntarily, and Slate laughed.

"Every time we get rookies aboard for an op like this, their reactions are the same. There's a reason why nobody dares mess with Atlas."

Jaune nodded along. "I can see why."

Pyrrha's eyes met Jaune's, and he gave her a subtle shake of his head in return.

"Angel Actual, we're approaching the drop point. Get the Spike and get ready, I'm going to have to bug out fast and rearm."

Slate gestured to Barnes, who grabbed the Spike from the rear of the Razorback, before the Lieutenant turned back. "Arc, I want you and Liym as our pointmen. Nikos and I will take the rear, Barnes, Argon and Strong in the center. Sound good?"

Jaune placed a hand on his sword. "You're the more experienced here, I'm deferring to your judgement."

"Ten seconds!" The pilot called over the radio, and Slate nodded to Liym, who gave her shotgun a one-handed pump for dramatic effect.

"Five seconds!"

The Razorback skimmed the street hard, engines whining in frustration as they strained to keep the Skyhawk only a few inches above the ground, and Angel, plus Jaune and Pyrrha, piled out, already opening fire as notifications popped up for Jaune.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Operation Kingslayer**_ **]**

 **[Defeat the Shai-Hulud.]**

 **[Rewards: 750,000 XP, Skill Book, Title]**

 **[You've entered a Raid Zone!]**

Jaune raised his shield to take the claw of a Beowolf Alpha as Liym blasted it straight in the chest, hurting it enough that Jaune finished it, Crocea Mors slashing through its neck.

They were already under attack, and they hadn't even placed the Spike yet. Jaune wasn't ecstatic with his luck so far.

* * *

They were already running low on ammunition.

Beowolves and Ursa swarmed them still, attracted to the sheer amount of Aura that he and Pyrrha both possessed, though he imagined his was a considerable bit more of a wider margin in comparison, it still dwarfed the locked Aura that all of Angel had.

Not that unlocking it would do any good. At this point, it might overwhelm their senses, and without the time needed to get accustomed to it, they'd perish.

There was also the matter of Aura attracting Grimm much the same as negative emotions did, but that was a lesser known fact, not quite easily found out by the public, and was also the very same reason why most, if not all Hunters lived outside of small villages, instead of inside them.

For cities it didn't really matter all too much, the consolidation of people made Aura virtually indistinguishable compared to negativity.

Jaune didn't know why this was running through his head. He was getting distracted, and now was definitely not the time to ruminate on one of Goodwitch's lessons.

Another claw met his shield, Jaune shrugging it away without much thought as he cut through the offending Grimm, barely paying its dying form any mind as he moved onto the next target.

"We're nearly out, L-T! Two mags!" Argon shouted, and Slate shouted a grunt of understanding as he opened fire on an Ursa Major, his heavy machine-gun belting rounds into its thick hide without pause as Pyrrha quickly got atop it, wedging her blade through the crack in its skull plating.

They had a moment of respite after that, or at least as close to one as they could as the city seemed to leak Grimm from every crack.

"Calling a drop now, ladies, take a step back!" Slate called out over the gunfire, and his call was soon proven true as an angular crate, vaguely reminiscent of one of Beacon's rocket lockers, hit the ground between them, sending a plume of dust and grit into the air as it slammed down.

"Can you cover us, Hunters?" Slate asked, as his gun clicked empty.

Jaune nodded. "Not like we have much of a choice!"

Slate grinned at that.

Pyrrha walked backwards towards the crate, rifle spitting out rounds, and Jaune did much the same, stepping back and slashing at whatever got within his reach.

They'd closed up their grouping to reload, and it would cost them, they'd have to push back through again, but at least they had rounds to do so.

"Jaune, now would be as good a time as any to stop holding back!" Pyrrha called out over the noise, and Jaune glanced in her direction for a moment.

"You sure?!"

Pyrrha slashed the leg of a Beowolf and quickly shifted her weapon, putting a round in its head. "If you don't, we may not make it out of here anyway!"

Jaune nodded. His shield became his sheath, and he stored it on his belt, Barnes looking at him like he was mad.

"What the fuck are you doing, kid?!" He screamed, as Jaune took an Ursa claw on his sword alone.

Jaune paid the soldier no attention as he cast _Mana Shield_ , the construct appearing on his arm, just smaller than his actual shield, leaving his hand free to cast.

And cast he did.

A _Gravity-Infused Mana Blast_ sent the nearest cluster of Grimm rocketing towards the sky, spinning as they became distant, and Jaune watched with satisfaction as the automatic targeting of the Daedalus incinerated them with a shot.

Barnes looked as if someone had placed him into an alternate reality, staring at Jaune in shock.

"Get your shit together 1-5!" Slate shouted. "Worry about it later!"

Jaune continued to pay Barnes no mind as he stepped forward, a Beowolf getting _Shield Bashed_ backwards, where a _Mana Slash_ carved it and three more in half, the return slash cutting through two more.

Something Jaune understood about the military was calling out what he was doing, and it appeared that this was in fact how Angel operated, because the moment he called out "Flashbang!" all of Angel took cover, and the _Mana Flash_ went off in the air, Grimm roaring as Jaune went to work.

He and Pyrrha were like fluid, flowing their way through the approaching monsters like they were nothing. It was incredible to witness, and bear witness was exactly what Angel were doing as they fired shots at any straggler that Jaune or Pyrrha missed.

But something felt wrong to Jaune.

A quick _Observe_ bore fruit to his investigation, and Jaune realised what was wrong.

Quantity over quantity.

The Grimm they were fighting weren't over level twenty.

But there were just so many of them.

How?

Where were they all coming from? There hadn't been anywhere near this many the last time he'd been here, so what happened?

"Pyrrha! I don't know if I can hold this up! I'm going to have to slow down a little!"

And he was. _Mana Shield_ was consuming 5MP/s, and that left him with a little over 3MP/s regen. And with the rate he was using his spells, he was going to be out of Mana fast.

At least a single cut from Crocea Mors killed any of the Beowolves, and even the toughest of Ursa took less than five. The backup from Angel also meant that he effectively didn't have to worry about finishing the crippled ones, as Liym effectively took over, her shotgun discharging buckshot into their skulls, as Pyrrha became the other pointman.

Plans were meant to be adjusted on the fly, anyway. He was always better at thinking on his feet.

"We're in position!" Slate called out, as a burst from his HMG removed the chest of a Beowolf. "Clear the area, and we'll set up the Spike!"

A burst of _Spinning Mana Bullets_ turned the nearest group of Beowolves into corpses as Jaune dismissed the _Mana Shield_ , flipping his grip on Crocea Mors so that he could hold it in reverse, using his arm, with the extra defense that the blade provided, to block incoming attacks. It wasn't better than using an actual shield, of course, but Jaune's shield didn't have edges that were so sharp they never need be sharpened.

An Ursa found that out the hard way as it strayed too close, and Jaune removed its grasping paw for it, which it seemed to object to, until a round from Strong's rifle dissuaded it from any further complaints.

It also gave him a free hand to cast with, something a nearby Alpha Beowolf didn't like very much as it found its entire torso suddenly missing, a _Mana Lance_ courtesy of the only one who could hitting it hard enough that it seemed to be in shock.

The radio in the helmets of Angel crackled, and, loud enough for both Pyrrha and Jaune to hear, came unfamiliar voices.

"Apache-Actual, Spike is ready!"

"Gold-Actual, Spike is planted!"

"Prism-Actual, we're set!"

Slate motioned to Barnes, who pulled the Spike out of the pouch on the back of his armor, giving it a twist.

The Spike, which up until that point had been more of an oval-like device, suddenly opened up, a massive spike, for which Jaune assumed it was named, plunging out the bottom. Barnes wound back, and drove it into the ground, only for the spike to dent the concrete.

"Shit!" The soldier swore, and tried again, to no avail.

"Toss it here!" Jaune called out, and Barnes did so, throwing it to Jaune, who deftly caught it in his free hand and, in one smooth movement, Aura lighting up his arm, drove it into the pavement with a resounding crunch.

"Angel-Actual, hit it!" Slate shouted into his helmet's microphone, and Jaune did so, slamming his hand down on the glowing red top of the Spike.

At once, four shuddering ripples pushed through the ground, and sent shivers down the spines of anyone on the ground.

Then the howling started.

* * *

 **Man, I really like this chapter. Maybe I just have a thing for military operations, I dunno. Probably all my time playing and reading XCOM. If you haven't read any of DrAmishMD's work, you really should. Like, really really should.**

 **Now, onto reviews for this week!**

 **commandosquirrel: Not just yet, I'm afraid. Soon tm.**

 **TheB: Yeah, he could've. He didn't, though, and that's what makes it fun! But he will, in theory, be able to get all stats up to max level. It will just require him to get to max level. Which is not 100. There's a little teaser for ya!**

 **DuplicateUserName: Ah, were it only so easy. Then again, that'd be a little boring, and we all know I don't do well with boring! Danger! Explosions! Death!**

 **dirtrevor: I'm thinking less looter-shooter and more classic, because there's only so many things I can do without setting up a Borderlands-style script to randomly select various parts and combining them. Then again... I may have a little pet project to work on. I wonder how good I am at scripting, now. As for item rarity, it is currently a hodge-podge of numbers, but I just figured out a way to do weighting, thanks to some ingenious usage of AND scripts. And a lot of sugar. Man that was a long night.**

 **ZenRaven: Hey, that's fine, it's all up to personal choice. I don't force anyone to read my stuff, and in return I don't expect anyone to read it if they dislike it. If it isn't for you, it isn't for you. Good luck finding something more to your taste though!**

 **armentho: It's a good thing he did some training, too, considering what's coming. It isn't a Raid Zone for nothing! Now, 'experience homologation' as you so adequately put it, is an interesting concept, something I believe I've already touched on with Jaune's Dance skill, though not quite to the extent that you are pointing out, and I can see what you're going for, how a halberd and an axe are similar. However, with the Weapon Proficiencies being less weapon to weapon and more technique to technique, what with One-Handed Melee being the highest level and also covering a wide range of weapons, I don't feel as though it is important enough to warrant an entire system dedicated to it. Though that isn't to say it isn't a good idea, and I definitely plan on having something along the lines later down the track, when I get some time to flesh out some of the current, let's say... bugs... the System is having. As for other people, gear, and alchemy, that's already in play with some of the stuff I've been introducing, and some of it has been in play since the very beginning. Thanks for all your ideas and feedback though, I always appreciate it!**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: I know I already talked with you in PM, but I figure I might as well mention this, and seeing as you did end up reminding me, credit to you? The Daedalus and the Razorback, whilst just names for existing things within Remnant, were taken from The Name of the Game, and whilst I was aware of Razorback being from that, I had completely blanked when I thought of the name Daedalus, and plucked it from thin air. Turns out, my brain works in mysterious ways, and we have two references back to back. Oops? Go read it, though if you're reading this, you probably already have.**

 **typhonyx: As right as you are on all accounts with the System, I feel like that would be a cheap way to fix my mistake. So, instead, I'm just going to increase the stat training rate from now on, for a while at least. As for the Relationship Meter, I really didn't think about that when I added it, it's pretty hard to measure a quantifiable number for a relationship, at least in writing. What it may become is a Morale Meter, measuring current morale, which I think works a hell of a lot better, and makes the previous Morale system actually come into play a lot sooner. As for stuff planned, I have the majority of the plot post-volume 3 planned out, but I am kind of improvising up to then. A lot of it is just me getting an idea, linking it with another idea, and continuing from there, occasionally linking in canon events. A concrete ending is still something I'm workshopping, but considering we're 200k+ for word count and we haven't left Volume 2 yet, this fic may end up being 1M+ words by the end. Uh... saying that aloud just made me realise how fucking absurd that is, but what can you do. That gives me space for about 8 Volumes of canon, give or take. Damn. (Oh, more great little Lancaster moments will come, but I don't want to rush too fast into it, much like a real relationship.)**

 **razmire: Great minds think alike, buddy. I do the same thing, because who doesn't want to be the most charismatic, intelligent, strong, wise, agile, enduring, lucky bastard in all of the world. Also I like even numbers.**

 **jedimasterb10: One of the potential weapon drops now exists in the form of the 1887. Lemme know what you want it named. And, hey, I'm seeing Endgame tonight, after a Birthday dinner, so I'm pumped. Managed to stay spoiler free, too, which I expect everyone to continue doing so in the reviews. I have to say I'm excited, and that's pretty rare for me when it comes to movies.**

 **lordrednight: Man, if I didn't accomplish at least a little bit of tech-porn this chapter, I don't know what I was doing with my life. And considering I had to remind myself of what the Razorback looked like, realised why literalsin named it such, and then figured what would be better than two Vulcan miniguns on the sides, well... I'm sure you can guess. Good fun.**

 **DarkLinkBlade: Don't you try and trick me into uploading early. Though, considering I've just finished editing this chapter and it's 9AM for me, this may technically be a Thursday upload for y'all.**


	40. Operation Kingslayer: Second Phase

The entirety of Mountain Glenn was awake.

This was not as good as it may have sounded to those who were not aware that the entirety of Mountain Glenn's citizens were Grimm of various sizes and ages.

So, whilst it was still accurate to say that the entirety of Mountain Glenn was awake, it was more accurate to say that every single Grimm in the failed city was now bearing down on the four points that had just set off their senses.

Natural disasters attracted Grimm. This was a common fact. Alongside this fact was another, lesser known fact. Unnatural disasters also attracted Grimm.

This may have been because of the latent negativity that came with a disaster, or it could be that Grimm were able to sense them and track down disasters, using the latent negativity to enhance their senses when they reached the area.

The second theory had been extensively tested over the years, and whilst there was no true way to conclusively test, many things had been attempted, and certain oddities had been noted.

One such oddity was the way Grimm reacted to extensive vibrations, and that oddity had led to the development of the Spike.

So, when Jaune and the other three teams activated the spikes in sync with each other, it created what felt like an earthquake to the Grimm, effectively attracting the biggest swarm since the Fall of Mountain Glenn.

And all Jaune and his friends had to do was defend the Spikes until the Shai-Hulud emerged.

Easy.

When the Deathstalker burst out of the ground in front of Jaune and Pyrrha, pincers nearly taking the redhead's arm, shield and all, Jaune realised that they were not going to be in for an easy fight.

Not like he'd truly believed that anyway.

Jaune spun, Crocea Mors flickering back and forth as he cut at the incoming Grimm, as Pyrrha and Angel opened fire on the Deathstalker, but already a second and a third were crawling out from the ground.

"How long do we have to hold out!?" Liym shouted, the sound of her shotgun discharging another powerful blast of buckshot almost drowning out her voice.

Jaune answered for Slate. "Until the Shai-Hulud emerges!"

"And how will we know when that happens?!" Liym shouted back.

Jaune didn't answer, instead taking the time to bury Crocea Mors through the head of an Alpha Creep that had dug out of the ground in front of him.

Pyrrha did answer however. "Trust us, you'll know!"

Jaune brought forth Cadejo, Alcmena and Callisto all at once, and his summons quickly joined the fray, claws, jaws and sharp feathers adding to the damage being dealt to the seemingly infinite horde that continued to push closer and closer, encroaching on the Spike that they had to defend.

But even with his summons, even with the firepower that Angel brought, even with Pyrrha's skill, it still wasn't enough.

He wasn't doing enough!

To make matters worse, his main way of disrupting a group, _Mana Quake_ , would disrupt the Spike, and that would be disastrous.

Though, come to think of it, he had a second way of dealing with large groups. It would just require a little more… explanation.

"Pull back, behind me!" Jaune shouted. "I'm going to try something, and I don't know how it works with friendly fire!"

Angel and Pyrrha were quick to respond to his order, Slate giving the Hunter-in-training free reign to command the battlefield, the man confident in the teen's capabilities.

And so, with everyone out of the way, Jaune cast a _Gravity-Infused Mana Calamity_.

* * *

It was a funny sight, in a morbid kind of way, Slate had to admit.

The sight of Grimm, once ferocious monsters of hate and suffering, reduced to comedic target practice as they floated about, somehow.

That was something that Slate wasn't going to ask about. The General himself had mentioned it to Slate during a personal briefing, and that was a rarity in itself.

Obviously, whatever the Arc kid could do was something the General didn't want the populace knowing about. Or even most of the soldiers.

"Under no circumstances are you to ask about anything his semblance can or cannot do, unless it is required at that moment. Likewise, you and your squad are not to disclose any information about what he is or isn't capable of doing, should you discover anything along those lines. Am I understood?"

It was what the General had said, and Slate always followed orders.

It was what had allowed him to gain rank as fast as he had, before he settled into his position as Angel Actual.

Brothers, he was the only original Angel member left, nowadays. So many had come and gone over the years, and he had remained a constant, for three reasons.

The first was, as he'd said, because he always followed orders.

The second was because he made sure that he had a good relationship with other members of the military.

Mostly the important members.

The third reason was only possible because of the second.

Slate always made sure to be prepared for any eventuality. He planned for failure, expected it, and was always happily surprised with success.

It's what made him such a profoundly solid pillar of the Atlesian Military.

Back home, even civilians knew his name. Lieutenant Slate, Angel Actual, the man who'd been captured by the White Fang and broke free.

He wasn't one to reminisce, especially not in battle, but he supposed he would be forgiven for his mind slipping as ever so rare as the occasion was, considering his age.

Fifty-four, not a year younger, not a year older. Wise, grandfatherly almost, but still almost as strong as he had been in his first years.

But even with thirty-plus years of experience in the field, never had he seen something so terrifyingly evil before.

"It's emerged!" Jaune shouted, panic sapping any kind of strength that might have been behind his words as he took in the scale of the worm that had burst from the ground.

Jaune had only seen it up close, which was a terrifying prospect on its own, but now, with the context of its actual size, he realised exactly why that tunnel had been so wide, and so long.

At its full length, stretched upright as it was, the Shai-Hulud reached up far enough that if it possessed the ability to leap, it would be able to reach the Daedalus.

That was a sobering thought.

' _How did we survive this thing!?'_

It was a question that didn't appear to have a proper answer, at least not one that Jaune would be able to find anytime soon.

Even if his train of thought hadn't been interrupted by the blaring of a voice through helmet speakers.

"Angel Actual, this is Skyhawk, we're thirty seconds out, en route."

Slate turned nearly one-eighty degrees to face the approaching Razorback, thankful he didn't have to fire off a flare.

Jaune cut through an Ursa that had gotten too close, and proceeded to feel like his entire body was vibrating at an atomic level as the Daedalus opened fire on the Shai-Hulud.

Glowing beams of energy converged on the giant Grimm worm, and the scream that it let out would haunt all those who heard it for the rest of their week at least, a torturous wail that seemed to carve a hole in their very souls.

"We're going now, Hunters! Get aboard!" Slate shouted as Skyhawk closed in, doors sliding open as its front gun opened fire, shredding an Ursa Major that strayed too close to Argon, who gave the pilot a thumbs up as he backed away, gun firing at the approaching Grimm.

Jaune knew he'd be the last to get aboard, he wasn't expecting anything else, and so he quickly dismissed his summons, their help appreciated but not needed currently, and began stepping backwards, sword still flickering out as he pulled his sheath off his belt and affixed it to his arm, deploying the shield and blocking an Alpha Creep that thought it could latch its jaws around his arm.

One swift strike and a decapitated Alpha Creep later, Jaune watched as Pyrrha hopped aboard the Skyhawk, only to nearly fall out again as the Daedalus fired another mindshakingly devastating torrent of energy.

She managed to grab ahold of the railing, though not without a rather obvious use of her semblance on her own armor, but at least she was inside.

The Grimm were getting closer, and more numerous. Jaune was still at least ten meters from the Skyhawk, and he was the only one still on the ground, but to turn around now was to invite the swarm to simply swallow him in their mass, trampling and feasting on his flesh as he found no way to fight back, as buried as he would be.

So, Jaune continued his backwards pace, calmly cutting away at anything that gained too much distance, occasionally placing a _Shield Bash_ on a Grimm to give himself some space.

It was slow going, and then Jaune had an idea.

"Take off! I'll catch up!" He shouted, only to grunt a moment afterwards as a particularly hungry Beowolf began gnawing on the end of his sword, much to the beast's dismay.

The pilot of Skyhawk looked back to Slate, only to receive a nod from the Lieutenant and floor it, engines whining as they strained to lift the craft.

Jaune turned now, and with only a split-second left to him before the horde consumed him, he _Jumped._

Aura pooled in his legs as he soared upwards, closing in on the rapidly departing Razorback, but it was too fast.

He wasn't going to make it.

Pyrrha stretched her arm out, and her fingertips brushed against Jaune's outstretched hand.

Close, but still not enough, and Pyrrha was too exhausted to levitate someone with her semblance. Even a boost of height wouldn't be enough now.

Jaune was falling.

He'd missed.

Except he hadn't. Jaune still had a few tricks up his sleeve.

He might've missed getting inside the craft, but that didn't mean he couldn't stick the landing. No pun intended.

Jaune _Flash Stepped_ upwards in mid-air, using the added momentum to nearly touch the bottom of the Razorback, and he flipped as he closed in, a cast of _Surface Walk_ sticking his feet to the bottom of Skyhawk.

He almost lost his footing as the Daedalus fired again, but he managed to maintain it, stepping around the hull and climbing inside, much to the surprise of nearly all its occupants.

The blond teen flopped on his back aboard the Skyhawk, letting out a strained laugh.

The rest of Angel slumped into the mesh-like seats.

"Shit, kid, you can't be doing shit like that. Gonna give me a heart attack," Slate muttered, and Liym reached over, patting her commanding officer on the back.

"Relax, L-T. He's all good, we're all good, now we just gotta wait for the General to blast that beasty back to hell."

Pyrrha placed a comforting hand on Jaune's shoulder as he sat up, the two sharing a smile.

"Uh, L-T? That worm thing…" Strong began, and Slate and the others looked out the door to stare at it.

Jaune was up on his feet in an instant, hand coming up grab the nearest railing. "What's it doing?!"

The Shai-Hulud was rearing back, massive burns across its body, the searing stench radiating far enough that even Jaune could smell it from here.

Then it stopped rearing back, and the most indescribably disgusting noise emerged from it as it rocketed forwards, and spat.

Jaune had never seen a giant worm monster spit a ball of acid and earth at a flying fortress before, so this was definitely a first, and it was also something he didn't want to see repeated.

He also never wanted to see the projectile impact against the Daedalus and shred through armor plating and hull like it was a hot knife through something firmer than butter, but still not firm enough to resist a hot knife.

He didn't want to see the Daedalus list as one engine suffered a critical failure, and he didn't want to see one of the massive turrets disconnect from its supports and plunge into Mountain Glenn with a massive crash.

He didn't want to see the turret then explode as its Dust batteries began cooking off, creating an even larger crater, lancing blue energy carving buildings into pieces.

"No…" Slate uttered, eyes wide beneath his helmet as the Daedalus strained to maintain its elevation, engines pushed to their absolute limits as the destroyer began to right itself.

"The Daedalus can't take another hit like that!" Barnes spat out, fingers tapping a stressed beat against his rifle.

Jaune turned to look at the Shai-Hulud once more, and _Observed_ it.

 **[Shai-Hulud]**

 **[The Devourer]**

 **[Level 75]**

 **[HP: 147,250/446,250]**

"It's two-thirds of the way to death!" Jaune shouted. "I might be able to kill it if we can get high enough above it!"

Even Pyrrha glanced at him in shock as he said it, and Jaune knew it was a longshot.

"No, kid. Whatever you're planning, no. You can't kill that thing, I don't care how strong you think you are," Slate said, placing a hand on Jaune's shoulder. "Have faith."

Jaune's head whipped around to stare at the grizzled soldier. "Faith? That thing is about to shred through the Daedalus, you really think faith is going to do anything?"

Slate's grip tightened on his shoulder. "Look. Watch."

So, as much as Jaune didn't want to, he watched.

And the Daedalus stopped listing. In fact, it seemed to level out, panels on the side unfolding.

"Normally, the Daedalus tries to use those plasma batteries to kill anything, because they cause minimal collateral damage," Slate explained. "But now that the big bastard pissed 'em off, I doubt the General cares all that much anymore."

Jaune's eyes widened as the loud sounds of rockets filled the air, adding to the din that was the battlefield, and the two teens watched in awe as a veritable fleet of missiles departed from the side of the Daedalus and curved through the air, impacting in colossal explosions that rocked the very air itself, causing turbulence aboard Skyhawk as plumes of smoke and fire covered where the Shai-Hulud had been.

"Sure, the Daedalus is damaged, but if there's one thing Atlas does, it's never go down without a fight."

Jaune stared in amazement and shock as the final barrage of plasma hit what was left of the writhing, screaming Shai-Hulud, and, finally, it slumped down, dust and rubble kicked up as the ground underneath it collapsed, revealing the Glenn underground to the surface for the first time in years.

Black mist drifted into the sky, wreathing the atmosphere in an eerie personality, and Jaune watched on as the Shai-Hulud died.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[** _ **Operation Kingslayer**_ **]**

 **[Defeat the Shai-Hulud.]**

 **[Rewards: 750,000 XP, Skill Book, Title]**

Jaune let out a breath of relief that seemed to empty his lungs permanently as he slumped back into a seat, hands hanging limply at his sides.

"Shit, L-T, we haven't had an op like that in years. I feel a decade older, at least," Strong remarked, letting out a relieved laugh.

"Happy seventieth, Strong," Liym remarked, and Strong took a mock-swipe at her head.

Liym was almost too tired to duck out of the way, deciding instead to take the hit directly, making Strong swear as he shook his wrist, having clocked it against her helmet.

Slate paid his subordinates no mind as he placed his other hand against Pyrrha's shoulder.

"You two did good. Impressed me, which is pretty difficult to do. If you don't get extra-credit for this, send your teachers to me, we'll set 'em straight."

Jaune had to laugh at that, and Pyrrha couldn't help but join in.

"I think the conflict of personalities might be a little more deadly that most of your operations, Lieutenant," Pyrrha said between laughs.

Jaune nodded. "Considering how intense Goodwitch can be, I doubt it'd be so easy."

Slate paled. "Goodwitch? Gods, nevermind. I take that offer right back."

Jaune found himself interested, and he could tell that Pyrrha was now on the edge of her seat. "You know the Professor?"

Slate waved his hand back and forth, a so-so motion if ever there was one. "She and the General used to be a couple. Terrifying woman, even more so when the two got into a rather heated argument. Let's just say I learned a few things about where not to put a riding crop-"

Slate didn't get to finish as a voice Jaune was unfamiliar with came over the Skyhawk's internal comms.

"This is Captain Bison, Kilo Actual. White Fang are getting away aboard a train full of explosives, headed for Vale. Any and all units able to respond, do so now. We don't have time to get the Daedalus home, so this is on you. Good luck out there."

Jaune paled as he heard the message, and Slate quickly shouted at the pilot, who began turning the craft towards Vale.

"Can we make it, Skyhawk?"

The pilot gave the biggest, most noncommittal shrug in existence. "We either make it or we don't, Lieutenant. I ain't a fortune teller!"

Slate amended his question. "Can we beat the train?"

This, the pilot had a more concrete answer for. "If the fuel holds up, and we don't plunge into the ground… yes. But you're going to want to hold onto something!"

Slate didn't need to be told twice, and neither did the rest of the Skyhawk's occupants, who all hooked their arms around something quickly, as Jaune watched the engines begin to rotate.

It all clicked with Jaune at that moment. ' _The Razorback is a VTOL?!'_

Then the Skyhawk doubled its speed towards Vale, and Jaune felt an immense pressure push him back in his seat as the doors closed.

All the while, the only thought that was going through his mind was ' _can we make it?'_

* * *

Ruby was terrified.

So many things had gone wrong, so quickly.

Nora looked as worried as she did, and that spoke volumes. They didn't even know if the other half of their team was alive!

Plus there was AWBN, and her… boyfriend.

It was hard to say, somehow, and even despite her situation she still found herself somewhat giddy at the prospect.

Only to have it stamped down as he mind regained control of her heart and she realised that Jaune could be dead.

And, to top it all off, the White Fang were making an attack on Vale, using the distraction of the giant worm to get a head start.

Then there were the memories of the Shai-Hulud she wished she could purge from her mind. That thing was… horrifying.

So many teeth…

"Ruby!" Nora shouted, getting her leader's attention. "We're nearly there!"

Ruby nodded, climbing to her feet and placing one hand on Crescent Rose to comfort herself.

She banished any memories of the dead Grimm to the back of her mind, she could deal with them later.

She had a job to do, a team to lead.

Well, hopefully.

She shook her head. No sense in despairing, that wouldn't help. She just had to have faith in her sister and Ren, and equally so in AWBN.

They would be fine, they were excellent fighters. Nothing could stop them, not even a massive, seemingly endless horde of Grimm.

A horde that had once been directionless, only for AWBN and RRYN to stir them all up, and the White Fang to give them a path directly to Vale.

Ruby didn't know if they were going to beat the White Fang to Vale, but she was desperately hoping so. The moment they got within communication distance she'd contact Professor Goodwitch and warn her.

Ruby turned to face Apache, who were checking their weapons. Apache-Actual looked to the young girl and gave her a nod, to which Ruby responded likewise, the older woman chambering her rifle with a new round.

"Apache, we're close. LZ might be hot, so be prepared," the pilot said, and Ruby nodded to Nora, who loaded the last grenade into Magnhild.

"Ready when you are, fearless leader!"

Ruby smiled a smile she barely felt.

The door opened, wind whistling past her ears, nearly deafening her, as the engines rotated into their vertical configuration, but Ruby was already jumping, Crescent Rose unfolding as she employed her landing strategy, Nora right behind her.

Apache rappeled out behind them, slower but still trying to keep up as Ruby landed.

Partial relief flooded the veins of the red reaper as she saw three more Razorbacks coming in, five figures leaping out of the open doors, more soldiers rappelling out.

They only had moments to greet each other though, because they hadn't gained any ground on the runaway train, and the courtyard they'd landed in exploded.

* * *

From a scientific standpoint, a train was not designed to be used as a battering ram.

This would seem like common sense to most, but it appeared to have simply slipped the minds of the White Fang.

Because the train they'd effectively reconstructed and sent barrelling into Vale at top speed had breached through the courtyard and punched a hole in Vale's considerable defenses.

At the cost of most of the terrorists aboard the train.

It was rare for any member of the White Fang to have Aura, it was almost always only the higher-ups that had it.

Those that had it had survived the initial impact.

Those who didn't, had a chance to survive the initial impact.

Some did, some didn't.

Those who did found themselves suddenly at the mercy of the merciless Grimm that had followed the train.

Blake looked on in horror as a Beowolf with half an arm sticking out from its jaws crawled out of the hole the train had made, red eyes already looking for more to feast upon.

It was greeted by eight Hunters-in-training, twenty soldiers, and a crowd of terrified civilians.

And a blaring siren that sounded out, the klaxon warning all of Vale as to what was happening.

Blake raised Gambol Shroud and fired at the Beowolf, killing it in a few rounds, but she was nowhere near lucky enough for that to be the only Grimm to have followed the train.

A much bigger round impacted a Creep that had popped out next to the Beowolf, and Blake was thankful to have some backup that had actual, legitimate firepower.

Weiss was a great partner, but there was something… unsatisfying, about a lack of firearms in a fight.

As much as she was loathe to admit it, it reminded her of the times she'd fought alongside the White Fang.

Of course, no one in the White Fang used a weapon that fired 12.7 millimeter rounds like Ruby did.

Another, lighter round hit an Ursa in the face, cracking the bone plating and puncturing the flesh beneath, indicating that Pyrrha had joined her, Blake glad to have more assistance.

Ren and Nora approached as well, the boy's SMGs firing bursts of ammo in much the same way hers did, and Nora occasionally fired a grenade down the hole, not doing the structural integrity of the tunnel any favors.

Whether that was a good thing or not remained to be seen.

Blake noticed Yang there, too, but as opposed to the rest of them the blonde was staying back, ready for when the swarm became too much for the torrent of bullets, arms raised, fists clenched.

The only one she couldn't see was Jaune.

That had Blake worried, though she would never admit it. If Jaune wasn't there, then there was a chance…

The black-haired Faunus shoved those thoughts out of her mind.

Pyrrha wouldn't look nearly as composed if she'd just lost their leader.

Jaune had something planned.

He always had something planned. It was why he was their leader, she supposed.

Jaune would make his presence known with some kind of new ability, shock everyone, and save the day, typical Jaune stuff.

He'd done it time and time again.

Though usually he had done it by now.

That worry began to creep up into her mind once more.

What if he had gotten hurt, or worse?

Well, actually, now that she thought about it, it wasn't like Jaune could get hurt. It was life or death in the most literal sense for Jaune.

Which didn't do anything to dissuade her worries.

Another round spat out the end of Gambol Shroud as the gun clicked empty, and she quickly ejected the magazine, reaching behind her to grab a fresh one from her belt.

Nothing.

Her hands clasped around air, and she realised that she was out of ammo.

Her partner saved the day once more today, Weiss stepping forward from her place behind her and handing Blake something that looked suspiciously like one of her own magazines, marked with something both familiar and unfamiliar.

Blake took it without question, though, she trusted Weiss implicitly, something that would have made her old self recoil in horror, and loaded it into the gun, waiting for the next target to emerge from the dirt.

"Wait…" Blake began, similarly confused expressions not only on RRYN and AWBN's faces, but on the soldiers as well.

Wasn't there supposed to be a giant horde?

* * *

The rattling of the Razorback barely fazed Jaune as he stepped outside the craft, _Surface Walk_ allowing him to stick to it without issue, if somewhat buffeted by the wind that blew past.

"Are you sure about this, Jaune?" Pyrrha asked her partner, a concerned expression on her face.

Jaune could barely hear her over the wind, but got the message regardless. "Yeah, Pyrrha! I need you to tell everyone where I am, in case they assume the worst!"

"Approaching Vale now! Above the line, if you're gonna drop, do it now, kid!" Slate shouted over the noise, and Jaune nodded, dispelling _Surface Walk_.

Pyrrha and Slate watched Jaune plummet towards the ground, face-first, his frame getting smaller and smaller by the second as the distance they gained grew.

Air blasted past Jaune at speed as he practically skydived towards certain death, the ground beneath him looking particularly hard today.

Something about near-death experiences made Jaune sarcastic and witty, who knew?

Of course, Jaune did have a plan.

Something he had never really considered, a combo that might just work as his new landing strategy.

Sure, he could just _Mana Impact_ into the ground at whatever speed he was going at right now, but that might collapse the entire tunnel that he knew lay beneath him, getting closer with every passing moment.

He needed a quieter, less attention-attracting method of landing, one that didn't sound like the Daedalus crashing down to Remnant.

He _Flash Stepped_ in mid-air once more, in the exact opposite direction his momentum was taking him, and then, just before he landed, he rolled, _Rolling Recovery_ triggering to take the majority of damage as he skidded to a stop, feeling the pain of landing still fire all the way up his legs, sapping a chunk of his considerable Aura.

Without the amount he had, he imagined it would have been far more painful.

But, he'd landed, silently-ish, and without too much trouble.

Now, onto phase two.

Phase two consisted of using _Terrakinesis_ to dig himself into the tunnel.

Something that proved to be remarkably easy.

He'd just misjudged how far ahead he was of the train, and as he fell into the tunnel, he realised that it was about three feet below him, rushing past at an incredible rate.

He grunted in pain as his chest hit the train and he almost rolled off of it, just managing to snag the side of the vehicle-turned-makeshift-weapon before he got dragged underneath it and turned into some kind of Jaune-pâté.

Ignoring that disgusting thought, Jaune pulled himself atop the train, held on for dear life, and waited.

He didn't have to wait long.

The train didn't brake, it didn't screech on the tracks, it just hit, converted all its momentum into kinetic force, and burst into the daylight with a jolt that nearly snapped Jaune's neck from whiplash.

It stunned him, the sheer amount of force. It actually gave him a _Stunned_ status effect, and made him unable to move for a few seconds.

That was something that had never happened before.

Jaune was quick to his feet once it had worn off though, wrenching open the hatch atop the train car he'd been on, which had thankfully remained upright, and dropping inside.

A car full of dead Faunus was not what he wanted to drop into, of course, but that was what he got, and he barely avoided puking as the sight greeted him.

Necks and limbs bent at odd angles, cracked skulls leaking blood slowly against the far wall. No survivors.

A sacrifice that ultimately meant nothing.

Jaune didn't dwell on it, pushing on through, his search renewed as he recovered his thoughts.

Somewhere in here, was going to be someone who survived, someone important, someone that he would not allow to escape.

Roars echoed through the tunnel as he broke open the door and pushed onto the exterior of the train once more, planning on investigating the next train car.

Okay, so he had a delay to his plan.

' _Think of it as Phase 2-B, Jaune_.'

Phase 2-B consisted of Jaune using whatever he could to take cover as the first wave pushed past him, ignoring his faint scent in favor of the much more delicious smelling scent of fresh civilians and bleeding terrorists that were further down the tunnel.

He let them pass, he knew his friends would handle it on their end. He wouldn't let them handle the whole horde, though.

The moment he thought the coast was clear, he stepped out of his cover and placed one hand on the wall of the tunnel, smooth concrete worn and chipped with age, splintered with cracks from the recent impact.

He pushed his Mana into it, willing it to obey, and as _Terrakinesis_ took hold, he began the tedious process of sealing the tunnel with the thickest barrier he'd ever constructed, out of the hardest stone he could manage to compress.

It was slow going, incredibly slow, and he found himself having to stop at least once to kill a Grimm that had gotten too close, but they became fewer and farther between as he sealed more, the smaller Grimm becoming the only ones that could pass through the only spot that was unsealed as of current.

It was because of these smaller Grimm that he was struggling to seal the wall completely.

He couldn't take the time to seal it completely as if he did, he'd crush a Grimm within the wall, and it would defeat the structural integrity of the wall.

At the same time, if he didn't, Grimm would just continue to pour through, and effectively make the wall pointless.

An idea occurred to him then, a solution presenting itself quickly. Whether it was because he was becoming more in tune with his semblance or if it was because of the recent boost to his INT and WIS, he didn't know, and he wasn't willing to delve into that line of thought at that moment.

 _Mana Field_ sprung from his other hand, pushing the scrabbling forces of darkness back as he closed in on the gap, using the projected Mana to force the Grimm back as he quickly began using _Terrakinesis_ to finish his barrier.

He couldn't hold it for long, though, so he was thankful it didn't take too much time to finish, and he let out a pant as he dispelled his control over both spells, leaning against the new wall.

It wouldn't hold forever, he knew that, but it was enough for now, until Vale and Atlas could clear the tunnel out completely and repair both ends. Or collapse the entire tunnel so Grimm couldn't get in in the first place.

Whatever Vale would decide to do wasn't important to him now, though, so he pushed through the lingering exhaustion he was beginning to feel, thankful it wasn't the true Exhaustion status effect.

He still had a survivor to find, and possibly imprison.

Crocea Mors in hand, he began walking towards the train cars, wary of any enemies that may have used his distractedness to prepare an ambush, not that he truly expected any to.

Anyone that was able to stand and fight was still not going to be in the best shape, and he had plenty of reinforcements waiting for him outside, with their only method of escape being to head towards them.

Jaune had thought this through at least a little, to his credit.

This wasn't like his initiation. He wasn't caught off guard, or confused. He was prepared. Ready.

He grabbed the door handle for the next train car and wrenched it open, the flickering light-bulb adding to the eerie atmosphere that really helped give the carriage full of more broken Faunus corpses the kind of horror-movie vibe that Jaune was really not a fan of.

Had they just not expected the impact to be so… jarring?

Had they even expected an impact?

Something was… wrong. Something didn't add up.

Jaune decided to go for the next car, only to have the door to it thrown open in front of him, a bloodied, beaten Fang member climbing out, his mask cracked and missing pieces.

And a giant chainsaw in his hand.

Jaune was on guard instantly, sword pointing at the man, but he simply coughed up blood and threw his helmet aside, slumping to the ground.

"Get it over with, human. Kill me."

Jaune was taken aback. "Kill you? What?"

The Faunus's eyes were intense as he glared into Jaune's own. "Do it, human. Or someone else will. At least let it be someone who doesn't want to make it last."

Jaune was still wary of the Faunus man, but he placed his sheath on his belt, free hand warily checking the man for injuries.

"I said kill me!" The man roared, his free hand grasping Jaune's arm with a ferocious grip, pulling him closer. "I won't become some animal for Atlas to use, boy!"

Jaune pulled back, the grip on his arm loosening as the terrorist coughed up more blood.

"What are you talking about?" Jaune asked, surprise etched into his face.

The terrorist spat to the side. "Atlas will take me, torture me, call it 'interrogation'. Then, when they're done with me, they'll pass me off to the SDC, and I'll become their labour animal, their slave. No rights, no freedom. Just a lifetime in the mines, never to see the sun again. Kill me, boy. I deserve that much at least."

Jaune shook his head frantically, even as he continued to check for injuries. "I can't. I need to know what happened."

The man grimaced. "You want to know, boy? You want to get roped into this?"

Jaune nodded. "I have to."

The Faunus let out a grunt of pain. "Fine. The one who's responsible for all this, the person in charge of Torchwick, in charge of Taurus, it's C-"

His voice failed him, and he couldn't speak. The answer was on his lips, and Jaune watched on in abject horror as the thin blade left his neck, blood spurting from the wound like water from a burst pipe.

It coated the short woman that stood next to him, her white and pink visage becoming irrevocably stained red, and yet she didn't flinch, didn't shy away from it, she didn't pay it any attention.

Because her eyes, her heterochromic eyes, they stared into Jaune's very soul.

She shook her head very slowly, a demure smile on her face, someone else's blood dripping down over her whole body.

A finger came up to her lips, the single index finger placed against the softness that was as equally coated in red, and she disappeared as fast as she had appeared, leaving only the fear that she brought with her.

Jaune felt Crocea Mors hit the ground, and he slumped to his knees, eyes wide.

 _System Mind_ did nothing to prevent the sobs that threatened to emerge from his throat.

* * *

Ruby had been the first one into the tunnel after Pyrrha had said that was where Jaune was.

She hadn't even waited for the rest of them, though with Blake and Weiss being somewhat distracted with their detainment of Torchwick, that was to be expected of them.

She'd just shot off into the tunnel, uncaring of what might happen. Jaune was down there, and he might need help, she'd thought.

She'd never seen a dead body before, though. She knew it would happen eventually, of course, and both her father and her uncle had done their best to help her prepare for the horrors that Remnant had in store for her with her chosen career, but still, words could only help so much.

It was a morbid thought that it didn't bother her nearly as much as she'd thought it would when she was much younger, but she had a more important person on her mind, and as hopped up on adrenaline and worry as she was, it wasn't enough to delay her.

But then the tunnel had more.

Corpses of Faunus littered the tunnel like it had been the site of some kind of mass suicide. Snapped necks, broken, bent limbs, missing pieces, blood and viscera all over the place indicated against that, but still, in a way, it kind of was a mass suicide.

Still, Ruby pushed onwards. Jaune wasn't one of the corpses, thankfully, so that meant he was further down the track.

Considering the light dimmed the further she got, the occasional flickering light of whatever bulbs had survived or a bit of flame from the crash would have to do illumination-wise, but it didn't bother her. It meant she didn't see what she was stepping past.

And then she found Jaune.

Conflicting emotions sprung up in her, a swirling mix of fear, relief, terror and a thousand other unnamed feelings flowing around like she'd been plunged into a melting-pot of emotion.

Jaune was on his knees, staring unblinkingly at the corpse in front of him, his sword on the ground next to him, a massive wall behind him.

And Jaune was absolutely covered in blood, dripping from head to toe.

"Jaune! Jaune!" Ruby shouted, trying to get his attention.

Jaune's eyes moved, just enough to meet Ruby's own, and he looked like he was struggling to breathe.

"Jaune, are you okay?" She asked, sliding to her knees in front of him, hands clasping his own shaking ones.

"I was too slow."

This confused Ruby. "Jaune, what are you talking about?"

His eyes moved back to the corpse, staring back at him in surprise. "I was too slow. I couldn't save him."

Ruby released his hands and grasped his head, tilting it so he had to meet her eyes. "It wasn't your fault, Jaune. They're terrorists, they made the decision themselves. No one would blame you."

The words felt hollow to Ruby the moment she said them, but to Jaune, they seemed to mean something.

"I was so close. So close."

Ruby leaned in to hug him, uncaring about what he was covered in. "Close to what, Jaune?"

"The truth."

* * *

 **Well, that was fun. Metaphorically fun, at least, I don't know if Jaune and co really found that as entertaining as I did writing it. Fun fact, Chapter 41 is already written. Don't ask me how, I entered a fugue state and don't remember what happened. Wrote like 12k words in a day or something crazy.**

 **Before I fall into another writing coma and accidentally write another ten thousand words, let's do some reviews!**

 **dirtrevor: I spent like a week reminding myself that I'm bad at Borderlands 2 as well, so I at least somewhat know where you're coming from. And, considering Jaune didn't even manage to touch to worm, as that was never the operation's point, no goodies as of yet. Yet.**

 **jedimasterb10: Well, considering that I haven't revealed how weapon drops will work, though I will be teasing a little bit next chapter, consider the Terminator added in, silver and red highlights and all. If anyone else has a few suggestions for weapons, I'll definitely consider adding them, though I won't go too crazy. Only so many things I can add before it becomes absurd. And you were right, Endgame was good. Very good. Saw Detective Pikachu as well, yesterday, enjoyable film, if a little rushed.**

 **typhonyx: I feel like I say this every time, but then I go back and realise that I haven't really said it at all, but Stats do effect Jaune, but it isn't like ten STR and he turns from average lanky teen to Hercules, you know? I have tried, in this and the next chapter, to push a sort of 'improved-Jaune' to the fore, as he becomes more and more capable of different ideas and tactics, but it can prove to be rather difficult, and I don't want to just interject that kind of "Jaune, being so much smarter than usual" into the text. If this were an animated series, or even just a webcomic much like the original Gamer, this, I imagine, would be much easier, but I am trying my best. It'll be more apparent in Chapter 41 though, don't sweat it. I have a pretty good reason as to why we haven't seen the poison punches yet, and as far as Jaune is aware, his summons don't die from HP loss. Tournament is going to be both fun and aggravating to write, so I'm looking forward to it.**

 **razmire: Well, you were right? Not that guessing 'something is going to happen' is a particularly difficult claim to make :P**

 **lordrednight: If I wasn't broke I'd be commissioning an artist for a cover page for Systema, lemme tell ya. Something about pictures really brings together a whole narrative. Angel were a last-minute addition, too, though it might not seem like it. I just picked a few random personalities and threw them all together, though there may be some similarities with a number of original characters I've written before, and not just for RWBY fanfiction.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: Trash tier? Are you kidding me? That was my whole Atlas arc! (I'm kidding, but only somewhat. Giving Jaune some kind of power-armor would be amazing, and completely broken.)**

 **Guest: I was ignoring the review because it doesn't have anything to do with Systema, and wasn't a review in any feasible way. You can feel whatever you wanna feel, mate, that's fine by me. Just don't expect me to go out of my way to acknowledge it, as I'm not obligated to in any way.**

 **Reesesracer: I hope this satisfied your dead-worm cravings. Though, we think it's dead.**

 **HAIL KING DELIRIOUS: I mean, you do know that Daedalus is a member of Ancient Greek Mythology, right? I'm not plucking things from games I haven't touched in years and remember nothing from, and I do tend to take a lot of names from Greek Myth as opposed to most other myths. Which is actually just coincidence, I'm not trying to be explicitly Ancient Greek.**

 **armentho: A lot of what you said is great, again, you seem to have put a lot of thought into it, which I can definitely appreciate, but there are a few things I need to mention. A; Jaune isn't playing a game based on pure realism, and that might seem a little odd, but with a lot of the ways I've set stuff up, items and crafting and such, XP is based on a number of algorithms, not directly affected by stats in any meaningful way, outside of meters, damage and skill unlocks. B; Jaune is still trying to be a Huntsman, and I don't think anything is going to change that, even if he realises that it's more effective to help people without combat. It's his childhood dream, his reason for pushing onwards, his motivation. C; Sand is notoriously difficult to move with Terrakinesis. Terrakinesis relies on shifting connected earth, and trying to shift disconnected earth, like sand, is particularly difficult. That would be more under the guise of Aerokinesis, at that point. As far as everything else is concerned though, you've touched on some great points, some of which I was planning on using, and some of which I hadn't thought of. Thanks!**

 **Kane: If by affinities you mean his Elemental Affinities, then Jaune already has six tier 1 affinities, the six base Dust elements. If by affinities you mean Elemental Infusions, then I can say that yes, he will be getting a few more than the base six, but trust me, they'll work a little differently than some may expect, at least in implementation. He just has to discover that fact. Radiation Dust, though, there's an idea. I guess that's what Energy Dust is, maybe? Also, electromagnetism is going to be a little... different. There is no Magnetic Infusion, or Magnetic Dust, at least, but there will be a point where he gets to use some kind of Magnetism. Maybe. Depends what happens.**

 **Well, that was a lot. My fingers are so frozen, typing takes forever, I'm not used to near-winter weather yet. I keep mistyping letters.**

 **Anyway, I have a twitter fat_flying, which I'm trying to be more active on, and a Pa Treon, as AFatFlyingWhale, in case you want to help support me and my writing.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	41. I Ran Out Of Chapter Names Again

They found Jaune in Ruby's grasp, the girl consoling him as he shivered, unable to fully explain what happened.

They'd assumed the worst, seeing the blood-covered teen in her arms, but thankfully hadn't panicked, Ruby's assurances accepted as just that.

Until Blake had seen the corpse that sat opposite Jaune.

"No… it can't be…" She muttered under her breath, a tad too loud if she hadn't wanted to be heard.

It seemed to snap Jaune out of his shock though, much to everyone's surprise. "Wh-what is it?"

Blake's head snapped to Jaune guiltily. "This was the Lieutenant."

Nora seemed a little confused, leaning close to the dead Faunus seemingly without a care. "His name was Lieutenant? Didn't that get a little confusing?"

Blake shook her head. "No, we never knew his name. I'd never even seen his face before today. He always wore the mask, even more than Adam did. It's his weapon that I recognize."

Jaune's gaze flicked to the chainsaw that lay in his hand, nearly having slipped out.

"Students, now would be a good time for you to depart."

The voice was as commanding as it was compassionate, and so familiar and yet so foreign.

Jaune realised it was Professor Goodwitch, and despite his situation, he was surprised. "Professor?"

Ruby volunteered to explain. "I called her as soon as we got within range. I figured a heads-up would be appreciated."

Goodwitch nodded. "I did appreciate it, Ms Rose, thank you. Thanks all of you, in fact. Your actions this day have saved countless lives, especially you, Mr Arc. From what your partner has told me, you sealed the tunnel yourself."

The professor looked at the earth-work behind Jaune. "An impressive wall, as well. Do you happen to know how thick it is?"

Jaune nodded as Ruby helped him to his feet, Pyrrha retrieving his blade. "At least a meter, Professor. I had to make sure no Grimm would get through easily."

Goodwitch nodded, already adding to her mental report. "Thank you, Mr Arc. Your contribution has helped more than you know."

"Not enough, though. I should've been able to do more," Jaune said, eyes straying to the remains of those who'd been less fortunate.

Goodwitch shook her head. "Mr Arc, I have been a Huntress for many years. That sentiment stays, no matter how hard you train, no matter how much you do. It can lead you to rapid growth just the same as it can lead you to an early grave. Do not make the mistakes those before you have made time and time again. You did as much as you could, Mr Arc. No more, no less. Take pride in that fact."

Jaune nodded, albeit slowly. "Thanks, Professor."

Goodwitch's more traditional nature reared its head. "Now, back to Beacon with you all. Classes start back up next week, and I expect to see you all there."

AWBN and RRYN shared a glance at that, exhaustion forming at the front of their minds, before they simply began trudging back through the tunnel, one goal in mind.

* * *

Jaune had exited the Raid Zone by now, and found himself rather disappointed that he hadn't gotten anything from the Shai-Hulud aside from the quest reward. It was apparent that if you didn't do any kind of damage in the fight, you didn't get any XP.

He knew they dropped items, though. He'd seen a few drop from the Grimm Pyrrha had killed, ones he knew he hadn't touched.

Though, even if that meant that the Shai-Hulud had dropped items in its grave in Mountain Glenn, Jaune wasn't willing to go back and check.

Honestly, it wasn't worth it to him. There was only so much pain and suffering he could take.

He'd gotten a Raid skill book and a title from the quest, and that was all that really mattered. Also XP, but that was a given.

He'd never noticed before, but the Bullhead was slow.

Maybe it was because he was used to the speed of a Razorback now, or maybe it was simply the adrenaline still in his body. He didn't know, and really, he didn't much care.

If he ever changed his career and became a pilot, maybe he'd care a little more, but he didn't see that happening.

The skill book and the new title weren't the only things that he'd received from his fighting.

Two title upgrades were the biggest things. He'd gone from Huntsman Trained to Huntsman Professional, all in his first year at Beacon. That was an interesting take. And that wasn't even mentioning how he'd gotten 48,400 Lien and gone from Copper Banker, all the way past Bronze, to Silver Banker. That was a lot of money.

Also, excluding the XP from the quest, gained 2,131,380 XP. Which was a staggering number.

Then there were the items that his summons had picked up for him, something he needed to thank them for, plus the items from his impromptu training session before they'd even departed.

So many skills had leveled, too, as had he. He'd reached Level 37, and gained 25 Skill Points because of it. It was an influx of information that he could appreciate. It distracted him from his failures.

That wasn't even all of it, though, because he'd, finally, gained additional stats from excessive… whatever he'd done. Even the System seemed to struggle as to what to quantify exactly what he'd done that had been so risky yet so rewarding.

So, as a gesture of metaphorical goodwill, he'd gained three STR, three END, two AGI, two INT, two WIS, one CHA and one LCK.

A full spectrum reward, in that sense. Which, coincidentally, had unlocked a new perk, too.

Jaune had a lot to look at.

The Bullhead faltered slightly, engines stuttering for only a split-second as turbulence hit, and Jaune grabbed the nearest railing, his grip tight enough that Aura pooled around his hand.

Then it touched down, engines winding down as the doors slid open, and the exhausted members of AWBN and RRYN began piling out, garnering significant attention from other students as they realised that the only students who'd actually had an opportunity to respond to the short-lived klaxon were the ones who were just now getting out of the airborne vehicle.

All that attention went from the group as a whole to Jaune the moment he stepped out, and suddenly the courtyard became deathly quiet as they took stock of the blood-covered teenager, one hand on his sword, following the rest of his friends as his fellow team leader stayed next to him, her glances flickering between the blond and where she was walking.

Jaune needed to stay positive for his team, though. That much he knew.

So, he kept walking, and decided to initiate conversation. That would at least make them think he was alright.

"Dibs on first shower."

Three heads of varying colors swivelled atop exhausted shoulders as Blake, Weiss and Pyrrha looked at him with what started as objections and quickly began choked noises of understanding.

Somehow, they'd forgotten the fact that Jaune was still quite bloody. Not his own blood, too, Jaune would have preferred that.

His own blood would at least mean that people hadn't died on his watch, terrorists or not.

Less than a meter away from the entrance to Beacon's dorms Jaune turned about-face, a sound registering in the back of his head.

The rest of his friends noticed it too, Blake's bow twitching as she too turned, and the eight stared up at the horizon as the Daedalus, wounded as it was, emerged from a cloud, effectively pushing it apart as it trailed a smoky trail.

"Well, we all made it. Good news, I guess," Jaune remarked.

Ruby let out a massive sigh as she saw the gigantic aircraft swim into view. "If all our missions are like that, I think I'll be ready to retire by our third year."

Yang snickered. "Says the fifteen year old."

Ruby glared at her sister. "I'll be sixteen soon, thank you very much!"

Jaune was still staring at the Daedalus though, something they all noticed. "How many do you think lost their lives in that first impact?"

That turned the mood somber quickly.

"Jaune, it wasn't your fault. You can't seriously be blaming yourself for that," Weiss said, grabbing her leader by the shoulder.

Jaune nodded. "I know, I just… there had to be something else. Another plan, or a different angle of attack, or-"

"No. That decision was made by the General, Jaune. Nothing that happened was within your jurisdiction. You were in charge of Pyrrha and yourself, and by extension the squad you were assigned. If anything had happened to them, this would be a different discussion, but we all know that anything that happened was outside of your control," Ren said calmly, and Jaune met his closest male friend's eyes. "You did excellently, Jaune, we all did. No casualties, nothing went wrong, and we drew out the worm. That was our job, and we accomplished it."

Yang threw an arm around her partner, much to Nora's amusement. "Well said monk-boy."

Ren extricated himself carefully. "Once again, I'm not a monk. I just meditate."

Yang nodded slowly. "Right~" She drawled. "Gotcha. Monk-boy."

Ren sighed. It was a long-standing back-and-forth, one that Jaune and the rest were all too familiar with.

Jaune gave the Daedalus one more glance, admiring the late afternoon sun behind it, before turning again, following everyone else inside, trying his damndest not to leave bloody footprints in his wake, and failing miserably.

Not that he really cared too much. At this point, if a professor was going to get angry at him for trailing someone else's blood through the dormitory hallways, then the whole threat that he'd been worried about was definitely dealt with.

Everyone important was certainly dealing with more important issues at the present time.

It took no more time than usual to walk to their dorm rooms, possibly less time by the sheer size of the berth that students were giving them, though perhaps that wasn't just because of Jaune.

There was no doubt in any of their minds that they smelt like a battlefield. They'd been on a battlefield. It kind of came with the job, at that point.

Dead Grimm, rubble and ignited Fire Dust had a very distinct scent, and when you immerse yourself into it, you stand out. It was common sense.

Human, or in this case, Faunus blood, that had a bit more of a distinct scent, and all it did was add to the general atmosphere that there group was exuding.

Jaune let someone else on his team open the bathroom door for him, thanking them as he stepped inside, Blake closing the door behind him, and Jaune didn't bother to lock it, realising that it would defeat the purpose of keeping it at least somewhat clean.

Besides, his team knew he was in here, it didn't really matter all that much. Unless they had a special guest that wanted to use their bathroom, he didn't really see himself in that much danger.

Well, 'danger'. Not real danger, at least. Maybe before he had gotten this semblance he'd consider it danger. Back when not locking the bathroom door meant multiple sisters walking in on you. Or you walking in on a sister.

Jaune shuddered involuntarily as he remembered so many awkward situations. His sisters never learned to lock the doors themselves, and Jaune was a pretty deep sleeper. Or had been, anyway.

Thankfully, Jaune wasn't dealing with the invasive Arc family, so he quickly hit the shower taps, steaming water pouring out, and he stepped in, still wearing his clothes.

There was no way Beacon were going to let him wash his clothes as covered in blood as they were without at least rinsing them first, so Jaune decided that he would quickly hit two Nevermore with one stone.

He did change out of them under the water though, and soon he was lathering himself with a hefty amount of soap, scrubbing at his skin.

The blood had dried, somewhat, so it wasn't the worst thing to get off, and it wasn't like he'd been as coated in it as the girl.

Jaune's grip on the shampoo bottle slipped and it hit the ground with a wet slap.

He recognized that girl. It was the same one that had helped Roman escape at the docks, and again when they'd fought the Paladin Torchwick had been piloting.

Of course, when he did see those times she hadn't been covered head to toe in blood.

Jaune leaned over and picked up the bottle of shampoo, pouring some into his hand and leaning back.

His hands began to massage the gelatinous substance into his hair and he felt his shoulders relax, no longer as tense as they had been moments before.

He could see himself in the mirror from where he was in the shower, and as he looked at himself, pink and brown eyes staring back at him from beneath his wet blond hair, he marvelled at his improved muscles.

He'd never looked this… strong, before. He knew he was getting stronger from his training, but now he had an objective look at his own physique, and it blew him away.

Jaune looked away once more, sticking his face under the warm water, rinsing away whatever was left over, before turning off the shower and stepping out, towelling himself off.

Now was the time to go over the day's progress with the System, but first he'd be leaving the bathroom. No sense in taking up time from his team, they wanted the bathroom as much as he had.

He quickly equipped a pair of dark sweatpants and stepped out of the bathroom, towelling his hair dry as he sat down on his bed.

"Uhh… Jaune?"

Jaune glanced up at an occupant of the room he hadn't previously noticed. "Oh, hey Ruby. What's up?"

He was happy to see her, she'd obviously used her leadership powers to demand that she have the bathroom to herself first.

Ruby's eyes were glaring a hole in his chest, and he looked down, wondering what she was looking at.

Right. He wasn't wearing a shirt. It wasn't that big a deal, he hadn't thought, at least a quarter of his team was attracted to the same sex, or at least he assumed so, considering Pyrrha's choice of date to the dance.

Then again, his date to the dance, and his girlfriend in general, and wasn't that word enough to send chills down his spine in all the right ways, was sitting on the end of his bed, and staring mouth agape at him.

"Do you… want me to put a shirt on?" He asked, raising an eyebrow.

Ruby slowly shook her head. Jaune wondered if he'd accidentally broken her. Sure, he'd admired his own physicality only moments before, but that was him taking pride in what he'd accomplished. It wasn't like he was taking part in some kind of ritualistic appreciation of his attractiveness.

Ruby looked like she wanted to conduct a number of rituals involving him.

Jaune decided to put a shirt on, lest he continue to be treated like a slab of meat.

The addition of the magically appearing shirt seemed to be enough to snap Ruby out of her trance, her cheeks lighting up red as she locked eyes with Jaune. "Right, sorry. I was going to ask if you wanted to go get some dinner?"

Jaune's answer was summarily drowned out by the answer his stomach gave, and he smiled sheepishly. "I guess that's a yes?"

Pyrrha stifled a snort at that, to which Jaune rolled his eyes at her in reply.

"Don't you have to go seduce my sister or something?" Ruby teased, something that apparently Pyrrha had not been expecting as she choked on the very air she breathed, face very quickly turning bright red.

The blond teen hopped up off his bed quickly, afraid of any vengeance Pyrrha might take, no matter how completely innocent the champion's vengeance may be, and opened the door. "C'mon Ruby, I'm starving, if you didn't already know." He gave his traitorous stomach a glance. "If we're gonna get food let's do it before Pyrrha decides to use her semblance on my fork while I'm trying to eat."

Ruby let out a laugh and gave Pyrrha and Blake a quick wave, ducking out of AWBN's dorm room and into the hallway.

As the two walked towards the cafeteria, Ruby stuck to his side, arm wrapped around his own.

* * *

They'd gotten a tray of food each, unsurprisingly, as that was the typical allotted amount of food, but with the trays came the stares, and Jaune wasn't quite sure if it was Ruby or himself that were struggling with that fact.

Though, it could be both. That whole equal-awkwardness thing that made them so similar had been somewhat ironed out after so long as team leaders, but it was still pretty central to their personalities.

Not that who it was directed at really mattered.

Nearly at their table, Jaune felt the stares intensify, and Jaune sighed, Ruby echoing his sentiments.

"Want to go find somewhere outside to sit?" Jaune asked, and Ruby nodded quickly, equally preferring to find somewhere quiet.

The two quickly redirected, pacing out of the cafeteria and out towards Beacon's cliffs, the path instinctual to Jaune now. It was just where he went, whether he needed to think, train, or relax.

His spot, he guessed. He knew Blake had basically claimed a corner of the library to herself, and that Yang and Pyrrha had taken complete control over one of the small gyms, so it wasn't too far of a stretch to say that the clearing was his place.

Not that any of his friends weren't welcome there. Far from it.

"The stares will die down soon enough, I think," Jaune said, more for his own benefit than Ruby's.

Ruby nodded, however, suitably assuaged of her concerns. "I hope so. I don't know why they're staring at us so much, though. They're going to go on missions like that at some point too. Did we really do something super weird?"

Jaune shook his head as he began climbing down the stairs, almost out of habit more than anything else. "I think they're just surprised we got a special mission, or something. They're probably jealous."

Ruby actually laughed out loud at that. "Jealous? Of that? All we did was get swarmed by Grimm for a while, and then watch a giant Grimm die, and then get swarmed by more Grimm!"

Jaune shrugged. "I know. I think they'll figure it out when they go on their missions. We did go kind of early, I guess."

Ruby hummed in agreement, stepping of the carefully Jaune-carved stone and onto the grassy clearing, finding a mysterious door in the cliffside. "Uh, Jaune?"

Jaune's eyes widened. "Oh, right! I hadn't even gotten a chance to actually mention this place. I started working on carving out a little hideout sort of thing just to kill a little bit of time and to find a place to work on some of my more… obvious skills. Like _Crafting_."

Ruby poked her head inside. "It's a little dark. Don't you have lightning or something to power this place?"

Jaune didn't quite know what Ruby meant by that. "You want me to what, stick my hand in a power socket and hope for the best?"

Ruby blushed, much to her chagrin. "I didn't mean it quite like that."

"I figured as much," Jaune laughed. "I know what you mean, though, I only carved out a hallway and the one room. I figured I wouldn't need much more space anytime soon, though."

Ruby wasn't dissuaded though. "You gotta make this place cool, though! It's a hideout!"

Jaune had to agree, and it helped that Ruby's enthusiasm was infectious. "I mean, I did get a lot of Lien from today."

"Exactly! You can get a TV, and a big couch, and a hugemongous bed!"

"I don't think hugemongous is a word."

Ruby ignored his interruption. "You can put a big worktable there, and another there, and then you can set up a proper foundry, not like the one back in Beacon!

That caught Jaune's attention. "What do you mean a proper foundry?"

Ruby's shyness caught up to her enthusiasm. "Well, I mean, it's not that Beacon isn't great and all…"

Amused, Jaune shook his head. "No, I mean what's a proper foundry for?"

And again, Ruby's enthusiasm rocketed far beyond her shyness, once again taking the lead. "Well, Dad knew I had a really complicated plan for Crescent Rose, so he and Uncle Qrow helped me build a proper workshop for me to work in at home. We cleared out the old shed, started putting stuff in, and before I knew it all my allowance was spent on parts and tools, and Dad and Yang helped me out with installing some foundry-standard stuff that I spent time customizing, so I could process my own Dust rounds, and build custom weapon parts, and assemble PACKs, and forge alloys, and it kind of got more and more complicated from there?"

Ruby trailed off, seeing the look of confusion on Jaune's face.

It quickly changed, though, as Jaune was struck by an absolutely brilliant idea. "Ruby, if you teach me all you know about whatever it was you were just talking about, I'll turn this place into our secret foundry-slash-workshop-slash-crafting-area."

Ruby very deliberately placed her food tray on the ground, and took Jaune's from his hands, placing it next to hers, before rocketing into his somewhat confused arms, hugging him tightly.

"YesyesyesyesyesYES!" She cheered through his shirt, face pressed against his chest.

He raised an eyebrow at her antics, as she looked up at him, her face slowly but surely turning red as she realised what she was doing. Jaune had never been more thankful for _System Mind_ doing its best to eliminate the sheer embarrassment he was feeling at her physical contact, though it looked like Ruby was wishing she had it as well.

Disconnecting from Jaune with an awkward yelp, she backed away and quickly retrieved Jaune's tray of food, doing the same for her own once he'd taken his out of her hands.

Jaune was thankful he'd started with the hallway and already made one room, though, as it gave him a frame of reference for what he was going to have to do, and having Ruby finally get to witness him actually using _Terrakinesis_ was always a plus.

She also had a pretty good idea of the size the workshop would need to be, but Jaune had an idea, another one.

A basement, of sorts, where he could put the workshop. Then he didn't have to worry about space constraints in case he ever had to expand.

He could make that room later, though, because first he wanted a table to sit at for the two to eat at.

So, Jaune converted the first room he'd made into a makeshift dining room, raising a platform of dense stone from the floor in the center and carving it around one-handed, his other hand carefully balancing his tray of food as he finished, placing the tray down and making two stone stools.

They weren't the most comfortable of seats, of course, but the _Candlelight_ made for a nice source of light for their dinner, and if Yang had been present both Ruby and Jaune would have struggled to prevent her from making a 'Candlelit dinner' joke, so it was honestly a benefit that the two were alone.

The two began to animatedly dig into their meals, hunger taking control of whatever resignations that the day had left in them, and they quickly devoured their food, thankful that it hadn't gotten any colder than it already had.

Worth it, though, in Jaune's opinion.

Once they'd finished, Jaune decided that he'd use a little bit of time to do some work on the architecture, something Ruby was more than happy to watch, enraptured by his ability to shape the earthen elements as he began moulding the stone to make sharper edges, evening out the corners of the room so it looked more like a box than a box that had been out in the rain for at least an hour.

Sharper, more defined edges were the result of a few minutes of hard work, something he was glad to see, and Ruby reminded him that they had at least three days before class started back up, before it once again shut down for the break as students went on their missions, and preparations for the Vytal Festival began.

Jaune had forgotten all about the Vytal Festival, too.

"I'm really looking forward to it, you know? I always watched it from home, so even if I don't make it in, I get to see it in person, and that's always something I wanted to do, so it's kind of a win-win sort of thing!" Ruby said, her cheer as infectious as always.

Jaune could understand the sentiment. "I always watched it at home with the whole family, if they were home. Most of the time it was at least six of us, so we'd cram onto the couch and cheer for Beacon. Or whoever Marigold and Azalea decided to cheer for, anyway. I still don't think they've grasped the whole concept of national pride."

Ruby laughed. "Yang just cheered for whoever was winning. Makes sense, considering her and Pyrrha."

Jaune finished the rough carve of the second room, quickly checking the rough dimensions. "Any idea how that happened?"

Ruby shrugged. "I barely know how we happened, and isn't Pyrrha your partner?"

Jaune quirked an eyebrow at the red reaper. "Yeah, but Yang's your sister. Shouldn't you, I dunno, share everything or something? That's what my sisters did. Well, do, I guess."

Ruby shrugged. "Apparently Pyrrha caught her super off-guard. Though, between you and me, I think Yang's always been kind of smitten with Pyrrha. Something about her competitive nature being the same as Yang's, or something equally weird."

"Well, I'm yet to properly face off against either of them, so I can't say for certain, but I know for an absolute fact if I went toe to toe with Yang or Pyrrha without my semblance, they'd wipe the floor with me."

"Oh, without a doubt," Ruby said, doing wonders for Jaune's perceived self-confidence.

Jaune finished evening out the second room, the edges being the ninety-degree corners that he appreciated so much in general architecture.

"You know, if this whole Hunter thing proves to be too much, you could get a job as a builder."

Ruby's offhand comment made Jaune choke on air as he laughed, caught completely off-guard.

"Thanks, Ruby," He exhaled, barely getting his lungs back in working order. "Glad to know you have such faith in me."

"What? No, I didn't mean it like that!" She quickly exclaimed, rushing to cover her accidental slip of the tongue.

"Mmhmm," Jaune hummed, facing away from the girl so that she couldn't see the teasing smile he couldn't hide on his face.

Ruby wasn't an idiot though. "Shuddup, meanie."

At some point, when Jaune was halfway through clearing a third room, Cadejo decided to summon himself, something that still caught Jaune a little off-guard, and slinked up to Ruby, effectively begging for the girl to run her hand through his fur, which she did so with glee, more than happy to give the wolf some attention as Jaune continued his work.

It was therapeutic, for both of them, Jaune's excavation.

Relaxing, in a way. No one was demanding anything from them, aside from Cadejo, of course. It meant that Jaune and Ruby could just talk, exchange little teasing jabs and just generally catch up, something they increasingly had less and less time to do, especially after how their dance had ended.

They still hadn't really talked about their relationship properly yet, either. It had been more or less of a mutual agreement that they'd figure things out at a later date.

Jaune finished the third room, which he had decided to make twice as long as the other rooms, effectively making the hallway connect to it twice, though he decided to seal up one of the doors upon further deliberation, and checked his scroll.

Evening had well and truly fallen by now, and the last vestiges of whatever energy he had were fleeting at best.

Ruby herself looked like she was going to appreciate her bed more than ever this night.

"Hey, we should head back up," Jaune mentioned, and Ruby nodded drowsily.

So when he went to leave his little hideout and Ruby didn't make a move to follow him he was a little confused.

"Carry me, please?" She asked, sounding like she was giving him an ultimatum. Either he carried her up to Beacon or she would sleep on the floor, using Cadejo as a pillow, though from prior experience Jaune could confirm that Cadejo was in fact a good pillow. The wolf was surprisingly spongey when he wanted to be.

Jaune rolled his eyes at her antics and did so, effectively scooping her up and beginning his long, somewhat more exhausting-than-previously-expected walk back up to Beacon.

Maybe he needed to change the stairs for an elevator.

* * *

Yang had accepted the sleeping Ruby with a nostalgic smile, though the handover had been a bit more awkward than Jaune expected it had been a decade earlier. Ruby was a little taller, for one thing, and there were only so many spots Jaune could use to hold her lest he anger either the red-hooded girl or her equally, if not more so, terrifying sister.

Yang at least had some practice with a sleepy Ruby, and Jaune watched in amusement as Yang effectively threw Ruby at her bed, the girl landing in a sprawl and, still asleep, adjusting herself until she was under the covers.

Jaune raised an eyebrow and Yang just shook her head. Sometimes there were no explanations.

He bid the awake members of RRYN a good night before retreating to his own dorm room, opening the door and stepping inside quietly, only to find that his three teammates were still awake, and all reading various books.

He noted with humour that Blake's was the only one that was distinctly not schoolwork-related, but he decided against mentioning it, in favour of not being stabbed in his sleep.

Jaune decided, right before sleeping, that he'd give the System one final check.

His inventory had a pending notification, that was the first thing he noticed. A list of items he had acquired that he hadn't seen.

And what a list it was.

20 Inert Dust, various Grimm materials, a bunch of Lien, and a few things that sparked Jaune's interest.

2 Minor Potions of Healing, 1 Minor Potion of Mana, and 3 Grade IV Lightning Dust crystals.

Now those were items that Jaune could appreciate. The new Lucky Looter perk was coming in handy.

Speaking of perks, his new one, Marathon Runner, appeared to double his Stamina. That was always appreciated.

So, Jaune had some things to do tomorrow. Potions to learn, a hideout to excavate, and various pieces of machinery, equipment and furniture to shop for. Oh, and read that new skill book he'd gotten, look into his new title, and see what it would take to create a fourth summon.

Maybe it was going to be a few things to do over the course of a couple days.

Jaune turned off the lamp next to his bed, rolling over.

There would be no sleeping for Jaune tonight.

No matter how hard he tried.

* * *

 **Well, this was a good little chapter. Well, 'little'. It's a decent length, at least, and will be leading into our Vytal Tournament arc, where things are going to get a little more... stressful, at least from a writing perspective. I have a lot I've got to set up for then, behind-the-scenes, but I'm hoping it all works out!**

 **I've also been toying with a few new ideas, story wise, including the potential branching into a new archive, because there's only so much RWBY you can write before you need to write something else, if only to refresh your mind. Systema won't be stopping, don't worry, these are just little side projects I put a bit of time into when I can.**

 **Anyways, let's move onto the reviews for this week!**

 **typhonyx: Hey, no, I never thought you were. I always appreciate people bringing up things they feel need to be addressed, it helps me make sure that I'm on the right track, both narratively and mechanically, so don't feel bad. As for his magic-less combat capabilities, I'd say he's about on par with a regular, typical Beacon student, so a little stronger than Cardin and his gang, but I wouldn't say he could wipe the floor with Ren. You're probably pretty on point with that comparison, but Jaune does have a significant advantage with his sheer amount of Aura. Having never played any of the Bioshock games, something I've been meaning to do for years, I will have to quickly search that up... Alright, yeah, you're pretty spot on. God I need to play them.**

 **lordrednight: This chapter was also written in the same day, aside from the very final segment, so if it has a shockingly different style it's mostly because it had been more than a week since I'd written for Systema. I did, however, buy myself a real cookie, one of those big ones that take like 3 or 4 bites to eat. I'm glad to see you enjoy all the little moments, and I have been trying to split away from Jaune occasionally, if only to develop other characters a little. There's only so much Jaune is around to see, so it does help quite a bit to vary it up. I'm also hoping to develop our favourite leaders relationship some more, too. Glad you liked it!**

 **hirshja: To be fair, without the Shai-Hulud, they would've sent one team after Roman and the White Fang, who are arguably just as dangerous, if just on a more compact scale. If I remember correctly, and considering I haven't been back to reread the chapter, I think I said that he could collapse the tunnel behind the train, not in front of it. He only just reached the train before it hit Vale, and that was at top speed. And as for Neo, I'm taking some... creative liberties with her semblance, considering we don't entirely know the whole grasp of it. I feel like its a little more interesting that way, with her semblance being related more to what I'm planning on relating it to. Which, knowing all my reviewers, you no doubt picked up on. I'm glad that you feel so strongly about Systema, though, and I hope I can keep up the quality.**

 **drannakka: Ooh boy, soon! It'll work on the same aspect as a lot of the mechanics I've designed for Dust, which is probably pretty different to canon, because fun fact, canon barely dives into the mechanics of Dust at all. Which, from a story perspective, is perfectly fine, if they didn't have a character that was a heir to the biggest Dust conglomerate in the world. Just a little bit of a personal issue that stems from somewhat flawed world-building, that's all. I've gone off on a tangent again.**

 **TheB: Fear of failure can be a strong motivator, and fanaticism can be just as dangerous for the friend as it can be the foe. (Look at me, being all mysterious.)**

 **Dragon Lord Syed 101: Haunting was what I was going for! Glad to see that came across!**

 **jedimasterb10: Neo is best girl. She's just a serial killer. Not the worst thing out there, to be fair. I mean, it's nearly the worst thing, but eh. Though, considering what happened to DCTA, I can only wish you luck. I know how difficult it can be to write for a character that doesn't speak.**

 **dirtrevor: :D**

 **Kane: What? The worm, not dead? What could you possibly be talking about? I have absolutely no idea what it is you are implying. Why, its ridiculous.**

 **armentho: Sorry to have to delay the skill book and title, but at least you can see what he did earn. Which was a lot. Fun fact, if Jaune had killed the Shai-Hulud all on his own, he'd have gotten 63 million xp. So... yeah. I want to point out that, once again, you always give me so many good ideas, but your vehicle idea is one that sticks out the most. I have a few ideas in that regard, but I may end up employing a mechanic from literalsin's Name Of The Game, which is where a lot of my inspiration for specific systems appears to come from. Huh. I should work on that now, actually.**

 **AthanMortis: Hey, thanks! Fun fact, I read this review, went "Oh that name sounds familiar" then checked my followed stories, read the latest chapter of Survival Of The Fittest?, and then noticed. I'm glad you like Cadejo! I wanted to go with a mythology that wasn't so typical or obvious, and after a bit of reading I found out about the myth, and was really interested. Glad you enjoyed, and for anyone who isn't AthanMortis and is reading this go check out Survival Of The Fittest?, it's a great read!**

 **Deoxy'sNightmare: Wow, a whole day? You sound like me whenever I find something I think I'll enjoy. I'm nowhere near a good enough writer to write a convincing harem-esq romance, and considering how many people attempt it and it comes off as a little self-insert-y, I think I made the right call. The relationship meter was a poorly thought out idea that I scrapped, and will be re-implementing as the Morale Meter, a measure less of a personal relationship with someone and more like a mood meter, or a loyalty meter.**

 **Wow, that was a lot of reviews. Glad you all are so involved, it really motivates me to write more and more!**

 **I have a twitter fat_flying and a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale if you want to follow or support me!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	42. The Arcave

**Shorter chapter this week, things are getting busy as my semester starts to come to an end. Enjoy!**

* * *

"What does it take to get some good food around here!?"

General Ironwood sighed another lengthy sigh, having easily lost count of exactly how many sighs he'd sighed so far.

Talking with Roman Torchwick was an exercise in futility, it seemed. And seeing as he was a criminal of the Valean justice system, he couldn't use more… Atlesian methods of persuasion, not without express permission from the Vale Council.

So, he was stuck with trying to whittle down what will Torchwick had, through boredom and repeated questioning.

The problem was, Torchwick knew all that. He knew exactly what was happening behind the scenes.

It was endlessly frustrating.

"Torchwick, I am moments away from simply disagreeing with the Vale Council and handing you over to Captain Bison here. Just tell me what I want to know, and you can go relax in a comfortable cell, with good food, and a nice cigar."

Torchwick shook his head with so much condescension that Ironwood was almost willing to perform the 'enhanced interrogation' himself. "Why, General, it sounds like you're getting frustrated with my lack of cooperation. Is it such a big deal to you, my petty crimes? I'm just a thief, no one in particular. What could I possibly know?"

Ironwood gave into temptation for a single moment, grabbing Torchwick by the back of the neck and pulling him forwards, slamming his head into the metal table with a resounding thud.

"Either tell me what I want to know, or shut up! I've had enough of your bullshit, Torchwick!" Ironwood shouted, releasing his grip in order to slam both hands on the table, standing as he did so.

Torchwick just smiled that damn smirk of his, meeting the General's eyes as his nose mended the break slowly, Aura stitching up the wound. "And spoil the fun, General? No, I don't think so."

James Ironwood could feel his eyebrow twitching, out of his control. "Take him away, Bison. Have someone drop his dinner, by accident."

Captain Bison nodded, the burly man hefting Torchwick to his feet and manhandling him out of the interrogation room, back to his cell.

"I swear, if the Council don't give me permission, I'm going to beat it out of him myself. Call it an escape attempt," Ironwood muttered to himself, alone in the room.

Or so he thought.

"And where would that get us, James?"

Yet another sigh left Ironwood's lungs. "Oz. To what do I owe the surprise visit?"

Ozpin placed his mug down on the table, wary of the bloodstain. "I felt it apt to visit, to see how your interrogation was proceeding. It appears it is going about as well as I had expected."

"The crimes he's committed, it would be a death sentence in Atlas."

Ozpin nodded along with the General's words. "And yet, you wonder why Atlas is seen as so backwards, despite being so advanced. Perhaps it is the brutality of the systems the Atlas Council has in place that gives it that reputation."

Ironwood looked up at Ozpin, staring into his eyes. "And exactly what would you have me do with him, Ozpin? Keep him locked in my brig until he dies of natural causes?"

Ozpin had to concede that point. "Regardless, that was not the original intention of my visit. I have come to ask a favour."

"I'm listening."

"I need you to bring in your most trusted operative, as I have. Our enemy stirs in the dark, and their next move is coming. We need our allies here, James. Where they can help."

Ironwood nodded. "I'll send for her. She will arrive within the week."

Ozpin nodded. "Thank you for your time and consideration, James. A pleasure, as always."

And with that, Ozpin left the cold interrogation room.

Once again leaving General James Ironwood alone with his thoughts.

* * *

Morning had led to a veritable torrent of a to-do list. Jaune was a little overwhelmed with the extent of which he had planned, but he moved onto the first on the metaphorical list.

Breakfast. The first thing he was going to do was eat breakfast. He'd certainly maintained his appetite from before dinner the previous night.

He'd then had his to-do list summarily cut down in size as he met Ruby in the cafeteria, already halfway through her breakfast. Pancakes and maple syrup with a healthy, or unhealthy, amount of strawberries atop the stack.

The reason his to-do list had been cut down was because Ruby had taken it upon herself to give her father a call about delivering her workshop to Beacon.

"And your dad is fine with it?" Jaune asked, as he sat next to her, his less-laden pancakes still looking more than appetizing.

"Mmhmm," Ruby hummed through a mouthful, before quickly swallowing down the delectable mapley goodness. "He said he'd send it through with someone, and that it'd be here in a couple days! Course, my stuff is a little outdated, now, so we may have to get some new equipment, but it won't end up costing an arm and a leg!"

A stray thought crossed Jaune's mind, and he vocalized it without meaning to. "I could sell my organs on the black market."

Ruby did a literal double-take. "What?!"

"Huh? Did I say that out loud?"

Ruby nodded, a concerned expression on her face. "Please don't tell me your budgeting is so bad you need to start selling body parts!"

Jaune shook his head frantically, hands waving back and forth. "No, no! It was just a thought. I regenerate, right? In theory…"

Ruby shook her head, one hand coming to rest on the bridge of her nose. "Maybe save that sort of thing for a serious medical injury that you can't heal through normal means. I don't think selling your seemingly infinite organs is a good idea."

"Can we please stop making fun of my stray thoughts and move on to something that doesn't make me sound so weird?" Jaune pleaded.

Ruby laughed at that. "Jaune, you're weird by definition. I don't really think there's much we can do about that now."

Jaune resolved to grumble to himself. It was easier than admitting the truth at least.

"But… you know how the Vytal Festival is starting?"

Jaune nodded. It felt like the preparations had been going on for months now. At the very least they'd been going on since before they first fought against the White Fang.

Man, if that didn't feel like a long time ago.

"Well, I was kind of wondering… do you wanna go check out one of the new weapon conventions they just opened up? They're showing off all the new stuff, and I figured that it's a win-win sort of thing. You get to learn all sorts of new stuff, and I get to look at new stuff!"

Jaune was more than happy to accompany Ruby out to Vale. It had been some time since the last time he'd done so, and he could definitely say he'd enjoyed himself last time. "Sure thing. Do we want to make it a date, or should we invite the rest of our teams, see if they want to tag along?"

Much like himself, Ruby was still getting the hang of this whole dating thing. The very concept seemed to turn her face nearly as red as her cloak, and his off-hand suggestion that this was a date did much the same.

But, to her credit, she forced through it. "I'd… like it to be a date."

Jaune agreed. He also wanted it to be a date. Spending time with Ruby was… comforting.

She made him feel at ease. At peace, almost.

"When do you want to leave?"

* * *

He had an hour to train, practice, experiment and understand the System before he'd be heading into Vale. At least, he had an hour to figure out his newest things.

The new skill book and the new title came to his mind in particular.

Jaune decided to start with the new book, pulling it out of his inventory and leaning against a tree, overlooking the Emerald Forest. If he looked down he'd see his little clearing. A peaceful place.

A quick glance over his shoulder in both directions had him free of observation, and he quickly learned the skill.

 **[You've learned a new skill!]**

 **[** _ **Area Acquisition (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you now passively pick up loot drops, whereupon they are automatically stored in your inventory._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

Jaune could feel the smile on his face grow wider. ' _Now, isn't that convenient.'_

Jaune stood up, stretching his arms, and let out a yawn. He was still tired from the previous day, and considering his sleep had been… sporadic, at best, it wasn't too much of a stretch to believe.

When he did sleep, the dreams…

He took a deep breath, the chill morning air crisp in his lungs.

The steps that he'd made, the ones that zig-zagged down the face of the cliffs, they could use some work, now that he looked closely.

They were a little too rough, a little too much like they were hewn with a mangled chisel. He could make them sharper, neater, but it would be so much effort for not much return.

Maybe if he ever had some free time, time that he didn't need to dedicate to the ever-growing list of things he had to do.

Jaune reached the clearing, mind still flitting between things he still had to do. ' _New title, Jaune. Look into it.'_

His own admonishment helped him focus, and he brought up his status screen.

And hadn't it been a while since he'd looked at it in detail.

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title: Huntsman Professional]**

 **[Level: 37]**

 **[XP: 147,276/607,836]**

 **[HP: 500/500 (2.5/s)]**

 **[SP: 1000/1000 (10/s)]**

 **[MP: 860/860 (8.6/s)]**

 **[AP: 4000/4000 (1/s)]**

 **[STR: 37]**

 **[END: 50]**

 **[AGI: 29]**

 **[INT: 43]**

 **[WIS: 43]**

 **[CHA: 28]**

 **[LCK: 26]**

 **[Stat Points: 33]**

 **[Lien: 68,845]**

"Whew," Jaune let out, noticing exactly how much Lien he had. "That's a lot of money."

It was, in fact, more money than he'd ever seen in his entire life. Well, despite the fact it was just a number.

It was an entertaining thought that he was his own bank account, though.

Jaune Arc was a lot of things, apparently.

He tapped the subscreen for titles, and decided to once again remind himself of the list he had available to him. Perhaps it was time for a change?

 **[Titles]**

 **[Huntsman Professional:** _+40% XP from Grimm kills._ _ **(0/100 Ursa Killed)**_ **]**

 **[Soul Tamer Novice:** _All Bound Souls have improved performance._ _ **(3/4 Bound Souls)**_ **]**

 **[Silver Banker:** _+30% Lien drop rate._ _ **(68.8k/100k Total Lien)**_ **]**

 **[Devourer:** _Devour Grimm to regenerate lost meters._ _ **(MAX)**_ **]**

The last one was his newest title.

One that Jaune would never equip.

The moment he read it, it disgusted him. ' _Eat Grimm to heal? Nope.'_

That wasn't something he was ever really going to be willing to do.

To be fair, it was a useful title. It was just a line that Jaune was not willing to cross.

Besides, what would his friends think, what would his team think?

What would Ruby think?

The System was ambivalent to morality.

It was something Jaune had been suspecting for some time now. It was a means to an end, and the end was dependant on the wielder.

No wonder Ozpin had been so careful with him. He was getting a bearing on his character, on who Jaune was, before he decided to make his move.

There was no doubt Ozpin knew whoever had used the System before him. There was no doubt that there had been someone, either. The Headmaster had all but confirmed that.

This training session had gotten far more introspective that Jaune had originally intended.

Jaune backed out of the title menu, quickly noting that he had thirty-three skill points to spend.

Well, as the saying went, when in Mistral…

A quick and dirty fourteen points disappeared into Wisdom and Intelligence, boosting each to fifty, and sending a jolt of electricity down Jaune's spine.

He knew he'd get two new perks, of course. That was how it worked. The notification came as no surprise, and he looked at them.

Mana Pool and Mana Channelling, the INT and WIS perks for achieving fifty in each.

Mana Pool appeared to double his total Mana, much like Mana Tank before it, and Mana Channelling, much like Mana Cognition, doubled his MP regeneration.

So, nothing new, but distinctly appreciated. There was something satisfying about having two-thousand Mana, with a rate of twenty per second.

Jaune was strong, now. Too strong, one could say.

He wouldn't. He'd seen what was out there. It didn't matter how many rounds, or in this case, Mana Bullets, you could put into a target, if the target didn't feel them.

A single _Mana Lance_ did 400 damage at its current level. Even if he could cast them infinitely, it still would've taken over 1100 _Mana Lance_ shots to kill that Shai-Hulud.

He still had 19 points to allocate, now. Only question was, where to put them.

13 points sank into Strength, another shiver down his spine. This time he could feel his muscles flex and strain.

Another perk, too. Fortified Body, which added 50% of his STR to his HP and SP, or the calculations at least. Whatever that meant in the background Jaune couldn't say for sure, but he could say that his HP was now 750, and his SP was sitting at 1500.

That was incredible. Jaune couldn't say no to that.

Not that he would, of course.

The final six points. Jaune decided on something a little… different. He placed them in CHA, the quick six points doing nothing, or so it seemed.

Maybe he was somewhat more charismatic now. He doubted it was that extreme. He was less awkward, now, at least. He'd noticed that, but he'd chalked it up to simply having immersed himself in an environment as social and complicated as Beacon.

He'd certainly managed more than he'd ever managed to do before, at least.

Then again, that wasn't with a giant audience of people watching him in the stands, with even more watching a televised broadcast.

It was fair to say that Jaune was a little nervous about competing in the Vytal Tournament.

It wasn't for another couple weeks at most, of course, but it was still going to be a nerve-wracking experience, he knew.

' _One day at a time, Jaune. No need to stress about things that aren't coming yet.'_

His thoughts were right, of course. Which was a strange thing to, well, think.

To be fair everything in his life was rather confusing lately.

A quick glance at the HUD clock that always hovered just out of his eyesight unless he wished to know what time it was, as was the purpose of said clock, told him there was still fifty minutes until he'd planned on meeting Ruby.

It was time to multi-task.

Jaune stepped inside his hideout, the gaping door-shaped hole in the cliffside that it was, and noted that the hallway was exactly how he'd left it.

Straight, wide enough for three to stand abreast, with three doorways, again devoid of the doors themselves. One on the right, two on the left.

To accompany the three doorways were three rooms, one which ran parallel to the length of the hallway, and the other two separate, next to each other.

Jaune knew a couple things about basic construction, thanks to some time spent as a workhand back in Domremy when he was younger, and he knew a little something about basements.

Airflow was very important, as was waterproofing.

In this case, waterproofing wasn't quite as necessary, but it would come in handy if he didn't want the hallway to suddenly be flooded.

So he set about raising the ceiling of the entire construct, by two inches.

Once he'd finished that, after about ten minutes, he did the same with the floor, raising it the same distance.

He'd effectively waterproofed the… what was he going to call this place?

His hideout sounded… malicious. Like he was some kind of criminal.

He actually laughed aloud at his second suggestion. ' _Arcave. That's the dumbest thing I think I've ever thought of.'_

Lo and behold, Jaune dubbed it the Arcave.

Because let it not be said that Jaune Arc was nothing if not an idiot.

The great thing about building, or carving, as it was, was that Jaune only needed one hand to do it.

Which left the other hand free for activities.

Like creating Soul Orbs with _Soul Harvest_.

Jaune also had a free mind. There was something oddly satisfying about using _Terrakinesis_ to shape out the 'Arcave', as much as he hated how much he loved that name.

Gods it was a terrible name. Suited the place to a tee.

But the fact that he had the capability to think freely whilst he carved and created Soul Orbs meant he could plan out the place.

He knew he'd be doing two floors, that much he'd already considered. But even with the rooms he'd made so far, he had an idea.

He could try for complicated architecture, but what would be the point?

Instead, he was just going to mirror what he'd already made so far, to make effectively four sets of three rooms, and adjust as necessary after he'd finished.

It also meant the total area would be nearly completely square, and made making the basement easier.

He'd effectively mapped out an area in his head, too. His newly boosted INT was definitely a help in that regard, though he was still going to get a hold of some graphing paper. Planning never went amiss with this sort of thing, despite the fact he'd basically started with no coherent plan.

Everything was nice and neat now, though, squared edges, and he'd set up holes for ventilation at the tops of the walls, tunnelling them all the way out to the outside and sloping the exit downwards, so as not to collect water.

It had been nearly an hour now, though, and it was time for Jaune to cut off the construction effort.

He had a date to get to.

* * *

It was a normal thing.

Completely normal.

It was a trip to town, to a convention.

It was a date.

Why was the very idea making Ruby terrified?

"Relax, Rubes. It isn't like this is the first time you've gone on a date with him."

Yang watched with amusement as Ruby rounded on her, and the older sister soon found herself hit in the face with a pillow.

"It wasn't a date last time! We were just hanging out!" Ruby exclaimed.

Nora grabbed Ruby from behind, tightening her into a bearhug. "Aw, fearless leader! You don't need to panic! That's all a date is!"

"Pfft, not like you'd know," Yang remarked, another pillow hitting her, this time with much more velocity, courtesy of the resident explosive expert.

"You don't get to say anything! Not like you have any more of a clue," Nora replied with a pout.

"I don't want to sound like I'm panicking, but as the one who is about to actually go out, I feel like you guys should, I dunno, be helping!?"

Yang stretched her arm out from her bed to rest on her sister's leg. "Relax. Seriously. You're going to look at weapons. He's going to look at weapons. That's like, your greatest talking point. I doubt you'll run out of things to say."

Ruby inhaled deeply, and released it after a second. "You're right, sis. You're always right."

Yang quirked an eyebrow. "What'd you do with Ruby?"

Another pillow.

Yang laughed, deflecting it with a lazy wave of her hand, knocking it to the floor. "If you're so worried about what you're going to end up doing, ask Ren! He's a guy, I imagine he'll know what Jaune'll do."

Ren looked up from his seat at the far end of the room, removing one bud of his headphones. "I'm allowed to take part? Since when?"

Nora slumped onto her bed. "Since we needed a guy's opinion on the matter! Duh, Renny! Weren't you listening?"

Ren looked at Nora, expressionless. "You told me not to listen."

Nora sat up. "Exactly! You shouldn't have listened to me tell you not to listen!"

Ren opened his mouth to retort, remembered who he was talking to, and promptly changed his answer. "Of course. How foolish of me."

"So, Ren. What do you think?" Ruby asked.

Ren sighed. "I don't think I quite understand the problem. Do you not trust Jaune?"

Ruby looked appalled at the very suggestion. "What? No! Of course I trust him!"

Ren didn't reply, instead choosing to simply gesture with his hands.

Yang picked up the slack of her rarely-vocal partner. "Ren's right, Rubes. You trust Jaune, Nora and Ren trust Jaune, I trust Jaune, his team trusts him. What is there to even worry about?"

"I'm not worried about him, Yang, I'm worried about myself! What if I look like an idiot, or make a fool of myself, or offend him or-"

Ren spoke up once more. "This is Jaune we're talking about, correct? The guy who stumbles through conversations and continuously scratches at the back of his head when he's nervous?"

Yang gestured at Ren. "Bingo. Jaune's as awkward as you are, Rubes. I get that you're nervous, but this isn't something you haven't done before. Last time was what, ammo and dinner? This time's no different, it's just weapons and lunch."

Ruby took another deep breath, patting down her corset with her hands. "Okay. Okay. Yeah."

Yang stood and hugged her sister. "Go. You'd better not keep him waiting, you know?"

Ruby smiled. "Knowing Jaune, he's probably spent all that time in the clearing, doing something cool with his semblance. Like usual."

Yang gave her sister a shove towards the door. "Go get 'em."

* * *

 **Well, short but sweet. Now, I'm just going to let you all know, I have a need of twelve character names, or three teams-worth, as excess characters for the Vytal Tournament. They may or may not end up getting a mention, but I still need names. So, in that regard, I'm opening up to user-submissions instead. If you want to send in a team of characters, let me know the team name, and if you just want to submit one character, I have three team names already, for that reason: Team GULY (Gully), Team TWLT (Twilight) and Team URNM (Uranium). I'd love to hear back from any and all of you if you want!**

 **Now, reviews!**

 **splithaven: I laughed at this, you had this review up in like five minutes. I'm a West Aussie, mate, it was like four in the afternoon or something.**

 **lordrednight: I hope you like the name, it made me laugh at how much of an idiot I am. As for a vehicle... at some point. Not yet, of course, but I'm going to be teasing a few things.**

 **Pharos30003: What? Did I say that? What could you possibly be talking about?**

 **commandosquirrel: Were it only so easy. :P**

 **typhonyx: I actually have a good excuse for the poison punches not happening as of yet. And considering in the start of Volume 6 we saw some professional Hunters, the title is pretty accurate. Comparing a regular Hunter to someone like Qrow or Winter is like comparing a 9mm to a .44 magnum. Sure, they both but holes in things, but one is a hell of a lot stronger. I'm going to be adding the plan for the Arcave to the public sheet, because I actually drew out a floor plan.**

 **jedimasterb10: Well, let me know when you put a chapter up, I'd love to check it out. As for Volume 3, well... I have a couple ideas for certain... events.**

 **ThunderBasilisk: I haven't quite decided yet. I may just have it decided by a dice roll.**

 **Shadow of God: I have a little list of all of AWBNRRYN's basic stats, but I don't have details on what level their skills would be, at least, not yet. I'd say he's at least roughly as skilled as all his other friends, melee wise, but he doesn't quite have a lot of the specialties that his friends do. Goodwitch and Ozpin would wipe the floor with him, though.**

 **splithaven: I may end up doing this, thanks for the suggestion! Though, I don't think I have unpopular opinions. Or any opinions, for that matter. I'm pretty private as a person, and try not to use any of my platforms to broadcast anything like that.**

 **armentho: Another veritable stream of good ideas. Ventilation was something I'd thought of. Man, I need to look into the way electricity works in my spare time (if I ever get any spare time). Team socializing is going to be happening more soon, too, I just feel like I want to have a few more Lancaster moments before we start delving deep into the whole Vytal arc. I fucking love the Pengrimm, by the way. I'd seen the picture when it popped up on the subreddit a few months ago, but this is properly a great idea. If/when we get to Atlas, the Pengrimm will definitely appear.**

 **drannakka: As of right now, there are four kinesis-based skills, one for each of the four typical elements. I'm contemplating adding lightning and gravity, and then having a certain method of combining them, so you may end up seeing ferrokinesis. Dust summons, though... They may be Bound Souls, but nowhere did it say they had to be Grimm.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: Close, but no cigar. This time, at least.**

 **greenitricoxide345: Yes, actually. I have a whole tournament-style bracket set up, and I'll give you a hint; AWBN and RRYN will not be fighting SSSN or CRDL in the first round.**

 **dirtrevor: Man, I'm actually one of the worst people to talk to about organisation. My only suggestion is to only dedicate as much time as you think each part needs, and if you get through something faster, use that extra time to focus on what you find difficult. Sorry I can't be of more help, but my life is secretly chaos incarnate. I slept 16 hours last night, and 3 the day before. Honestly, just don't do that.**

 **razmire: I don't believe there's anything they need to be debriefed on, to be honest. Even after RWBY's mission in canon there's presumably no debrief, so I don't quite think it's necessary.**

 **IcyStream: To be fair, he doesn't have any of the drops from the Shai-Hulud, so he has no way of making one. It is a cool idea though, and the idea of it searching for Dust veins is really cool.**

 **DuplicateUserName: I think that portrayal is pretty accurate to the canon, though, to be fair. I'm going for less hot-psycho and more for psycho-that-is-also-hot-but-not-as-a-character-trait, hopefully.**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: Sometimes having an idea and executing that idea are different things. Considering the way he pushes Mana into parts of his body to make certain spells it can be quite difficult to figure out a way to visualize the way many of those things would work. As for why Ozpin knows, well... the System is a mystery, and I want to keep it that way for a while. Unreliable narration, it's helpful for that sort of thing.**

 **Lamreal: Well, this is pretty fast an update for you, isn't it! As for Jaune's armor, well, you'll have to wait and see! It's coming!**


	43. Conventional Malignance

**Well, I had a shorter chapter last week. Wasn't happy with that fact. So, this one is longer. Enjoy!**

* * *

Jaune didn't really know what to expect. A building with a giant death ray atop it, perhaps?

Or maybe a giant forge, spanning miles.

It was exactly what he didn't think it would be. Which was a regular convention, full of stalls, which in turn were full of people, all trying to vy for the attention of passers-by.

Ruby had started off as nervous, as had he, but she'd soon become distracted, almost the moment they breached the walls.

There were a surprising amount of people, if Jaune had to be honest. A lot of people, in fact, that he half-recognized, simply from passing them in Beacon.

Ruby grabbed him by the arm and began excitedly dragging him towards a stall, one that Jaune wasn't really able to differentiate from any of the others, but to Ruby it appeared to be something special.

"Hello, welcome to Vale Joint Weapon Manufacturing's display booth at the 40th Vytal Festival!" A voice greeted them as they entered, and Jaune nodded to the greeter, before being summarily pulled inside by Ruby, who did not appear to be planning on slowing down anytime soon.

Jaune had assumed it would be a typical convention booth, and Jaune had been wrong.

It took up what Jaune could only assume was a quarter of the total area of the entire gathering, with a good half of that taken up by a firing range, and a smaller area filled with training dummies for melee combat testing.

Yet he couldn't hear any gunfire. It was quite strange to watch weapons discharging, with no sound to go with the flashes.

Ruby seemed to be equally confused by that, which meant it was new. There was no way Ruby wouldn't know about it otherwise, considering Jaune had to assume this wasn't her first time here.

The other side of the area had a stage surrounded by seats, all filled with people as a woman took the stage.

Ruby was quick to drag him to a standing position close enough to the presentation, and even he found himself echoing her anticipation.

"I'm certain all of you have been waiting a long, long time to hear this," The presenter began, pacing a path atop the stage. "I could take my time, teasing it out with various details to other projects, making the tension rise further and further, but I won't, because this is Vale Joint Weapon Manufacturing's greatest design yet."

Ruby was on the edge of her feet, as she lacked somewhere to sit.

It wasn't just Ruby that was excited, though. Jaune could tell that whatever the announcement was, the audience had been waiting for it for some time.

"In conjunction with the Schnee Dust Company, we have developed Remnant's first Grade V Storage Tech!"

Applause filled the air as a podium on the stage lifted itself from a hidden door, revealing something that Jaune didn't recognize, not to his surprise. A circuit board of some description, veins of black liquid flowing through it, white specks giving it an eerie glow.

"Woah…" Ruby let out, staring intently.

"Grade V Storage Tech is the newest, greatest advent of Storage Tech, and has the capability to store up to six times the size of the circuit!"

Jaune's eyebrows shot up, partly because he thought he understood exactly what that meant.

He leaned over to Ruby, just to make sure. "Storage Tech's that stuff that your weapon uses to compact down, right?"

Ruby nodded slowly. "Six times… that's a lot. It's probably super expensive though."

Jaune had to agree.

"Considering the extent and latent expense of the materials we've had to use, the Grade V Storage Tech is currently not available as a product outside of specialised orders, but if you would like to discuss orders, please talk to one of our attendants."

The presenter then began delving into the details of the newest product, and Ruby dragged him away once more. "C'mon, we don't need to hear the rest of it. Wanna go talk to an attendant about our plans?"

"Our plans as in the workshop?" Jaune asked, to make sure.

"Mmhmm," Ruby hummed in acknowledgement, stepping over to one of the attendants.

"Hey, you two look like Beacon students. Anything you need help with?" The attendant asked, peering close at Jaune and Ruby.

Ruby seemed to freeze up, words on the tip of her tongue, and so he figured he'd start it off, give her some time to think.

"Yeah, actually. We're planning on building a decently sized workshop for our teams to use, outside of Beacon, as a way of getting an advantage over the other teams in the Vytal Tournament, and we were wondering if you had any suggestions for equipment and things that we might need?" Jaune answered, _Deceitful Speech_ lacing each word with false persuasion.

Ruby, having overcome what appeared to be a mild dosage of stage fright, quickly added on to his detailing. "We've already got a lot of equipment on the way, but we're wondering if you guys had any tips or tricks that we could use."

The attendant looked a little stuck, before they quickly gestured to someone else. "One sec, you guys should probably talk with my boss. Here she comes, she's far more qualified to help you two out."

With that, the attendant stepped back. Ruby's eyes opened wider than Jaune thought was physically possible.

"Y-you're Master Engineer Sam Wright!" Ruby squawked in surprise, shock evident on her face.

The woman nodded, giving Ruby a small smile. "Well, can't say you're the first person to recognize me, but you're definitely the youngest. You two got names?"

Ruby looked like she was about to turn into a stuttering mess, so Jaune once again stepped up. "I'm Jaune, that's Ruby. We're first-years at Beacon."

"Pleasure to meet both of you. Now, from what I've heard, the two of you are trying to outweigh Beacon's forge when it comes to specialised equipment. Talk to me, what've you got in mind?"

Ruby and Jaune shared a glance, before Jaune decided to bite the bullet. "Whatever you think we might need if we were planning on building everything to gear up an army."

The Master Engineer, as Ruby had called her, raised an eyebrow. "What would you possibly need an army for?"

Jaune quickly shook his head. "No, no, I don't need an army, we just want to get all the stuff for one, because…"

No excuse came to mind, and Ruby sighed.

"Because I love making weapons, and Jaune wants to spoil me."

Jaune latched onto the somewhat-true excuse with immediate support. "Yeah, exactly. Figured we could start helping with offloading a lot of the stress when it comes to maintenance for our teams, too."

The raised eyebrow stayed where it was. "Well, it's certainly one of the strangest reasons. Can't say I'd disagree, especially with a boyfriend like yours, though."

Jaune scratched at the back of his head as Ruby turned a similar shade as her name.

"So, Jaune, was it?" She asked, looking to the blond. Jaune nodded. "Right, well, considering the fact that you're holding a weapon that looks pretty simple in comparison to hers, I imagine that Ruby here will be teaching you how to make a weapon. Am I right?"

Once again, Jaune nodded. "Yeah. My sword is an old weapon, my great-grandfather used it in the Great War, but other than that it's just a sword."

Sam let out a sigh, a contemplative finger coming to rest on her chin in thought.

"You know what? I'll do you a deal. Ruby?" The Master Engineer turned to the smaller girl, as she placed both hands on the table that separated them. "Show me that weapon of yours, and then we can talk. That thing's got me all sorts of curious."

Ruby, more than happy to have any excuse to gush about Crescent Rose, quickly whipped it out, laying it on the table.

Despite the fact that Jaune knew next to nothing about what Ruby was talking about, and despite the fact that in the back of his mind he knew that, technically, he wouldn't need to know any of the details to be able to create something, thanks to the System, Jaune still found himself listening as Ruby turned from shy and adorkable to knowledgeable and capable as she found a kindred spirit in the form of Master Engineer Sam Wright, the woman apparently asking all the right questions.

When Ruby had finished, it had been at least fifteen minutes, and Jaune had to admit, even if he had enjoyed just listening to Ruby talk about what she loved, he had found himself zoning out a couple times.

Jaune, however, did manage to tune in in time to hear what Sam had to say next. "One more thing before I go all out to help you. What can you offer me?"

Jaune frowned at that. "We're just asking for help, that's all."

Sam nodded. "Yeah, I get that, but considering what you're asking about, it isn't too much of a stretch to imagine that you two are planning on starting a little side-business. She's got the brains, you've got the Lien, a match made in business heaven."

Jaune shook his head as Ruby did the same, albeit somewhat more frantically. "That isn't the plan. We're far too busy to worry about making a business. Especially now, right before the Vytal Tournament."

Sam shrugged. "All the same, you don't get this far in life without a backup plan. So, tell me something, convince me. What do you have that I, or Vale Joint Weapon Manufacturing, might want?"

Ruby looked to Jaune, concern on her face. "Jaune, it's fine. We can just use the stuff I'm bringing from home, we shouldn't need anything else."

Jaune shook his head slowly, lost in thought. Something about the Master Engineer was bugging him. "I didn't think you handled the business side of the company, considering your role and all."

Another shrug, this time accompanied by a sharp glance. "If you don't have anything to offer me, I don't see us working together."

There it was. The thing that had been bugging him. "You want us to work for you?"

He phrased it as a question, careful with his words. Ruby stopped worrying and started to look at the Master Engineer in a new light, curiosity all over her features.

Wright shrugged. "I don't want you to not work for me, if that makes any more sense. She's got talent, you've got the will to learn, and the Lien to spend on doing so, and you're both Hunters, in-training or not. That's a magnitude more than we normally get, we usually design civilian weapons or specialised components. We don't touch the Hunter field, and we rarely get to see designs from that area up close."

"You want any weapons we design to be licensed by your company," Jaune said, as the realisation hit him. "None of your designers have the kind of field experience we do."

"Bingo," Sam said, a rueful smile on her face. "Glad you figured it out, I hate having to spell it out to people. It always sounds a lot worse out of my mouth than their own."

This was a business negotiation, now. Jaune found himself surprised.

"Damn, where's Weiss when you need her," He remarked under his breath, causing Ruby to laugh softly, but it appeared it hadn't gone unheard.

"You know a Schnee?" The woman asked, pushing her sandy hair out of her face and leaning forward, intense curiosity on her face.

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, she's one of my teammates."

"Well damn. Impressive team you've got there. I don't know if you heard, but the VJWM is in collaboration with the SDC on a lot of projects."

Jaune decided he needed a moment. "Do you mind if Ruby and I discuss this for a moment before we give you an answer?"

Sam shrugged once more. "Sure, go right ahead. I'll be here."

The two quickly stepped away, taking some vacated seats and sitting, Jaune resting his elbows against his knees as he rested his head in his hands.

"So, what do you think?" Jaune asked Ruby. It was her designs that would be most likely to be licensed, there was no doubt about that. Sam didn't even know if he could make anything, and neither did he.

"If I'd been asked that a year ago, I'd have jumped at the chance, but now… I want to make sure that they don't steal it, you know? Especially Crescent Rose. I don't want anyone else to use her, even if that makes me sound selfish," Ruby said, thinking hard. One hand came to rest on the haft of the sniper-scythe, comforting its wielder. "But the opportunity is pretty good. We can always back out if they make us sign a complicated contract, and I'm pretty sure Weiss would relish at the chance to prove how much smarter she is when it comes to contracts, so we can at least rely on her to help us out in figuring it out, you know?"

Jaune nodded in agreement, it was where his thought process had led him as well. "So, we accept with a condition or two, and then figure out what we need?"

Ruby agreed. "Sounds like a plan. Then we go get lunch. Deal?"

"Deal. I'll be back in a sec, I'll just let her know."

Jaune quickly stood and paced back to the Master Engineer.

"So, you two figure out what you wanna do?" She asked, leaning against the table.

"Yeah, actually. It's a deal, on a few conditions."

Sam stood upright, one eyebrow raised. "And those conditions are?"

"Any and all weapons we design, the designs are our property. Which means we're still the owners of the original designs, and our names are listed as the designers, depending on who designed it."

Sam listened along, nodding. "That's pretty much the most typical demand when it comes to this sort of thing. Anything else?"

"One other thing. You do us a deal on the equipment we're after. Weapons, armor, ammunition, all the stuff we might need to make them, and anything else that we might need for more… experimental stuff."

This one gave Wright pause. "A deal? As in we give them to you for free? Cause I don't know if we can do that, regardless of whatever you may be offering us. You'd still have to pay at least some Lien, in like a deposit or something. I can't authorize a purchase of that kind of expense without something to go with, you know?"

Jaune nodded. "I get that. How much would you think you'd need, minimum?"

The Master Engineer brought out her scroll, quickly doing a series of calculations, biting down on her lower lip in thought.

"I could do… forty-five thousand Lien minimum? And that's pretty generous already."

Jaune smiled. "Perfect. So, do we have a deal?"

Sam nodded, taking his extended hand in her own, the two shaking. "Deal, Jaune. Or should I say, Designer Arc. I'll give you my number, we can work out the details soon. You and Designer Rose should probably go have lunch, I have a meeting with my boss to get to."

Jaune nodded, stepping back.

 **[You've gained a new title!]**

 **[Designer Initiate:** _Gain +10% XP when Crafting._ _ **(Crafting Level 1/20)**_ **]**

Jaune almost laughed. That was what it took to get a new title? And it was a title he could feasibly swap to, because he definitely wasn't expecting to get into a fight whilst crafting, unless something went really poorly.

"So, everything's good?" Ruby asked, as he closed the distance between the two.

"All sorted. Sam said she'd contact me with the details, and I assume that'll also concern the deposit and where to deliver the equipment," Jaune replied, the two beginning to walk out of the building.

"Do you think they'll deliver to the Emerald Forest?" Ruby asked, concern on her face.

Jaune shrugged. "Don't know until you ask, I guess. If not, I'm sure I can figure something out. Or ask Ozpin for a favour. I'm sure there's some way of getting it done."

Ruby hummed in agreement. "So, deposit? How much?"

"Forty-five thousand. Not the biggest amount, in the grand scheme of things."

Ruby gaped. "Not the biggest amount? Are you kidding?"

Jaune laughed at her reaction. "We'll be getting paid for designs, so it isn't like we'll suddenly go broke. Besides, I've got a number of ways of earning Lien, I don't think I'll ever run out."

"Yeah, but you've got to take material cost into consideration, and power, and Dust, and all sorts of things!"

"Ruby, I don't even have the place built yet. That's going to be tonight and tomorrow, if we don't have class. I still have to figure out power, and I only just figured out ventilation. Then there's furniture, and I still have to tell the rest of AWBN and RRYN about it, so… I have a long list of things to do."

Ruby decided she didn't want to concede the point. "So, you still have a lot to figure out, and you just spent a lot of your money. Lunch, then we figure out power?"

Jaune nodded. "Sounds like a solid plan."

* * *

Lunch had been a brief affair, Vacuon-style kebabs on a decking overlooking the sea, which the two had then followed up on by wandering through Vale, asking around for information concerning all sorts of construction information.

Jaune and Ruby had learned a few things. Namely, that power was usually provided by accessing Vale's power grid, and that Vale's power grid ran off a series of immense Energy Dust crystals in formation.

The two had then figured that the smartest way to set up power was to not, in fact, attach to Vale's power grid, seeing as the entire point was to stay off the grid, and instead try and figure out how Energy Dust worked.

With Roman Torchwick locked up and the White Fang seemingly scattered, Jaune and Ruby had no real trouble finding a store stocked in Dust, though it appeared prices were still somewhat higher than usual, and finding a good quality source of high grade Energy Dust crystals was going to prove to be a challenge.

The highest grade they'd managed to find was Grade III, which wasn't all that great, apparently. Jaune had managed to get a quick conversation in with an electrician, who'd informed them that a single Grade I Energy Dust crystal would get about a week's worth of power, and a Grade III would get about three weeks.

Which, to be fair, wasn't all that great. Jaune didn't really want to have to constantly replace the thing, and considering that the electrician was basing that on a typical household, and not one that was running a fully-fledged workshop underneath it, Jaune had to assume it would have roughly half the expected lifespan.

The purpose of having multiple crystals, in this instance, would be as redundancies, as opposed to the multiple output rates that having them all linked up would do, like Vale had powering it.

Granted, he assumed that government and military facilities had the top choice when it came to Dust, and whatever was deemed 'civilian-grade' was allowed to be sold, so he doubted he'd see anything higher than Grade III unless he was really lucky, or went straight to the SDC. Which, whilst he could do, he didn't really want to bother them. Weiss on his team or not, that was just too much effort to go to when he could just stock up on a couple Grade III's and be done with it for at least the next month.

So, that was what Jaune did.

The salesman was more than happy to negotiate a somewhat fairer price, especially considering it was rather rare for anyone to actually purchase Energy Dust, and even rarer still for it to be the highest grade the store stocked.

So, Jaune found himself down a little over six thousand Lien, but three Grade III Energy Dust crystals richer. He'd bought out the entire store's stock, and with the way he'd learned to set it up, he'd have a total of four-and-a-half weeks of power for the Arcave.

Ruby had laughed at him for the name. She hadn't laughed at the name, she'd laughed at him for coming up with it.

He deserved the derision, to be fair, but he'd admit that it still felt a little hurtful.

Not enough that even the most sensitive of people would be offended, but still.

"So, anything else you'd like to do while we're out here?" Jaune asked, as the two walked down a reasonably busy thoroughfare.

Ruby shook her head. "Nah, not really. All our stuff isn't going to be ready for a few days, and there isn't anywhere to put it. I figure we head back to Beacon, and I get to watch you get all build-y."

Jaune found himself in agreement. With only three of his proposed twelve rooms actually carved out, plus the entire workshop floor still to be even begun, Jaune had a lot of carving to do.

It was a plus that Ruby found watching him excavate relaxing. Granted, he found it relaxing too. There was something about the deep, reverberating sound of stone grinding and shifting that calmed the soul.

It was far creepier when you knew it was a giant Grimm worm, but that was dead now, Jaune could put it behind him.

Memories from that day sprung to his mind unbidden.

He shook his head to clear them, Ruby's silver eyes meeting his blue ones, concern on her face. "Are you okay, Jaune?"

Just looking at Ruby made him feel better. "Yeah, yeah, sorry. Just got a little distracted. Did you say something?"

"Are you thinking about the Breach?"

The incident had become known to the public as the Breach, a typical name for an atypical event, one that had stuck quite steadfastly within Vale's community. Jaune was honestly quite impressed with the deductive reasoning Ruby was able to think with, because she'd guessed at his thoughts with surprising ease.

"Yeah. Just… bad memories, is all. Nothing to worry about, I'm fine."

Ruby accepted it, wrapping her arm around his own. "You know you can talk to me whenever, right?"

Jaune smiled a soft smile and nodded. "Thanks, Ruby. If I feel I need to, I'll take you up on that."

Ruby returned his smile, before returning to the matter at hand. "I was saying, you should do a rough carve before you get all serious about looks. If everything's roughly carved, we have an estimate of what size we need."

Jaune agreed. "Good idea. I knew what I was doing wasn't the most efficient use of my time, but it did look nice."

Ruby hummed. "Then, once it's all sorted, we can start wiring and everything. I'm sure between the two of us we can figure it out, but why don't we invite everyone down to hang out?"

"Thank the gods at least one of us is good at planning. I'll get enough wiring, there should be a shop near here somewhere."

Five minutes of browsing later, Jaune had an inventory of wire, fifteen-hundred Lien worth, which he knew would be more than enough.

"So, back to Beacon?" Jaune asked his girlfriend.

"Back to Beacon," Ruby agreed.

* * *

Jaune almost burst into laughter at the reactions everyone had when he told them he wanted to show them the Arcave.

The moment the name had left his mouth, Blake and Weiss had involuntarily retched, Pyrrha had quirked an eyebrow, Yang had burst into laughter, Ren had remained as deadpan as usual, and Nora looked like she wanted to test out her strength against Jaune's legs.

Ruby had simply sighed a long-suffering sigh that told Jaune that this was not the first time she'd contemplated her relationship with him.

Though, to be fair, despite the lackluster name, the Arcave was an impressive sight to a mere mortal. If anyone didn't know Jaune had something special to back him up, they'd think he was some kind of madman, able to excavate tons of solid rock with his bare hands.

Despite the fact that he was still needing to expand it, wire it up, add furniture… the list was longer than he liked to think about. Step one was, as Ruby had suggested, a rough pass through his entire plan, carving away only what was necessary in order to establish the size he'd need.

His plan had eight single rooms and four double rooms on the first floor, effectively making a grid pattern that was, technically, infinitely repeatable, given that he had enough space.

Already, though, AWBN and RRYN had plans for the rooms.

"If we really wanted to distance ourselves from the rest of the students, this would be an excellent place to do so. With eight rooms, we could each have one for ourselves, which is something I, for one, would appreciate to no end," Weiss spoke, her tone as authoritative as usual, giving Jaune absolutely no doubt that he would end up doing exactly that, if just to soothe the heiress.

"I wouldn't mind that all that much, to be honest. Besides, those dorms are pretty cramped. Getting some space to myself would be pretty nice," Yang said, leaning against the doorway that led to the Emerald Forest. "Just as long as it isn't dark and dingy, of course. I figure Scraggly's got a plan for that, though."

"Who're you calling Scraggly?" Jaune returned in reply, sticking his head around the corner of the new hallway he was carving.

"You, Blond Noodle. Who else?" Yang returned in kind.

"To be fair, Yang, you haven't seen him without his shirt," Ruby remarked, before promptly realising what she'd said and blushing bright red.

Yang, sensing weakness and seizing the opportunity that had presented itself, rounded on her sister. "Oh? When did this happen? Since when did you grow up so fast?"

Blake watched on in amusement as Ruby rocketed away from the blonde, cowering behind her. "I think Yang saw where you went, Ruby."

Pyrrha decided to come to the reaper's aid, wrapping one arm around Yang's waist and holding her back. "Easy, Yang. Let's not scare your sister off before she even gets to experience life."

Ruby blushed even harder, cowering even further behind Blake, who had resumed reading her book. "You too, Pyrrha!?"

"At least Ren took Nora to go get food. Can you imagine if she heard?" Pyrrha replied.

All the color drained from Ruby's face. "Oh."

"To be fair, I'm pretty sure that Nora's the only other straight one of us," Blake remarked offhandedly. "Makes sense that she'd be the one who'd go crazy for details. Well, crazier, anyway."

Jaune stepped out of the Arcave into the mid-afternoon sun with a stretch, covered in a thin layer of dust. "Well, halfway done with the first floor. Should be able to get the rest done by tonight."

Callisto thundered over to him, Nora atop her back. "We're back! And we brought food!"

Jaune didn't know why he'd expected anything else but pancakes, but his body was requesting calories, and who was he to dissuade his body?

It took him only a moment to create a table from the ground, with _Terrakinesis_ now at level 22, and benches to sit on took only a moment more.

Ren, ever the balance that Nora desperately needed, handed out the food, considering Nora had simply taken her abundant serving and sat herself down, already digging in.

Jaune watched as Ruby snuck a piece of pancake to Cadejo and another to Zwei, the two canine companions proving to be a troubling pair that really didn't need Ruby spoiling them.

They hadn't retrieved Zwei. Zwei had already been at the Arcave when they'd arrived. Yang swore he'd been in their room when they left.

And Cadejo's recent habit of summoning himself had some troubling aspects to it, but the wolf was still the more responsible of the two, so it wasn't that big an issue that Jaune needed to worry about.

A lone Beowolf thought it would try its luck and attack the group, but it made it all of about a foot out of the forest before bronze feathers pinned it to the ground, Alcmena landing at the end of the table to peck a piece of pancake out of Pyrrha's hand before soaring off into the sky once more.

Jaune was pleasantly surprised to see the new _Area Acquisition_ skill come into play for the first time as he suddenly found himself with an addition to his typical 'encounter complete' notification, in the form of a readout of the loot he'd acquired, this particular case being two Beowolf claws.

He'd finished eating by now, having devoured the food almost as fast as Nora had, and whilst everyone was still eating, besides Nora, of course, Jaune figured he would get back to work.

Though, he was warranted to some kind of break. Jaune let his hand run over the top of Cadejo's head, brushing against his ears.

Jaune was hit with a reminder, his own brain bringing his own words to the forefront of his mind within an instant. ' _New summon?'_

It was barely a coherent thought, but the message was understood nonetheless. Like the imaginary sticky-note it was, it accomplished its goal in the least amount of words possible, and Jaune quickly found himself searching through his inventory.

Another idea struck him, this time one that seemed almost completely different and yet, paradoxically, very much the same.

Jaune tossed the Grade IV Lightning Dust Crystal end over end in one hand, the unasked question on his lips.

His other hand placed itself against the ground and this time, instead of sketching out the entire ritual circle, Jaune simply willed the earth to move with _Terrakinesis_ , quickly carving the pattern into the dirt.

It finished within a moment, and it was obvious he'd drawn the attention of his friends, all craning to look over at him as he placed the Dust Crystal in the center of the rings, pushing Mana through the ancient design.

It glowed, brightly, as it was want to do, and then Jaune found himself stumbling backwards, struck by a bolt of lightning.

Once the smoke and the dust had cleared, Jaune stared at the small crater in shock.

The Dust had turned into a pile of dull crystals.

So, not the greatest result…

Jaune was halfway through considering vocalizing that thought when the crystals shuddered.

Jaune stared.

The crystals shuddered again.

Jaune was joined in his impromptu staring competition with a pile of shuddering rocks by quite literally everyone in the clearing.

Third time appeared to be the charm when it came to the crystals, as they shuddered for the third consecutive time, before slowly rising off the ground.

They formed a humanoid figure, seven foot in stature, and began to glow bright yellow, the same color as the original Dust Crystal had been, crackling electricity shooting between the floating crystals.

A name floated into Jaune's consciousness, of its own accord.

"Electrus…" Jaune exhaled, still staring.

The Lightning Elemental, for that was what it was, turned what Jaune could only presume was a proxy for a head, as it lacked any kind of features, towards Jaune, before kneeling before him.

Jaune, a little lost for what to do, stood there, stunned.

An apt reaction, to be fair.

"You have to stop doing this. It's starting to become something I'm getting used to, and I don't like that," Weiss remarked, first to regain her words.

"Uh… rise?" Jaune offered, still a little lost for what to say.

The elemental did so, standing back up to its full height.

 **[You've gained a new summon!]**

 **[Electrus]**

 **[Lightning Elemental]**

 **[Shard]**

 **[** _ **Stormbolt (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, your Lightning Elemental is capable of releasing a blast of condensed lightning, vaporizing anything nearby._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

 **[A title has ranked up!]**

 **[Soul Tamer Novice is now Soul Tamer Adept!]**

Jaune was about to discuss the goings-on of the past couple minutes with the rest of his team and RRYN, but Cadejo and Alcmena promptly interrupted him before he could even begin, communicating their urgent warnings.

Grimm. More than just the single Beowolf. A group of them, obviously attracted by the ritual. Somehow Cadejo and Alcmena hadn't picked them up until now.

"We've got incoming!" Jaune remarked, drawing Crocea Mors from the sheath on his belt, wielding it in one hand as the other prepared a _Mana Grenade_.

It was almost funny how lackadaisical the Grimm appeared to be as they stepped out of the undergrowth, growls and snarls filling the air as they realised that their ambush held no sway over their opponents.

Something was off about the lead Beowolf, though, and Jaune realised why after a quick _Observe_ detailed a few things about it.

 **[Malignant Beowolf]**

 **[Level 40, Tier 4]**

 **[HP: 34,000/34,000]**

Even when things were going well things were not going well. A common theme, it appeared.

Directly to the Malignant Beowolf's flanks were more of the same, though of a lower tier, the backing force almost entirely comprised of Alpha and regular Beowolves, all level thirty.

It wasn't a force to scoff at, but they were still a magnitude weaker than many of the things Jaune had had to fight over the past few days. He, along with RRYN and the rest of AWBN, plus his three Bound Souls and his new Elemental, would be more than enough to handle this encroaching opposition.

And what better way than to start off by testing Electrus and its _Stormbolt_ skill.

The Lightning Elemental heard the mental order and lifted both its arms, crystals realigning to fit a different form, and suddenly the very air was filled with the scent of burnt ozone as Electrus fired the _Stormbolt_ , the supercharged bolt of lightning hitting the Malignant Beowolf in the shoulder, vaporizing flesh and charring the wound as it did so, the Malignant Beowolf letting out a roar as it felt the pain a moment after.

The shot had done a decent amount of damage, nearly fifteen-hundred, but already Jaune could see it wasn't going to be enough, and Electrus wasn't glowing that bright yellow anymore, its crystalline structure having dimmed to the dull faded yellow it had been when it first appeared.

So, it either had a recharge time or it had one shot before it would have to be re-summoned. Jaune was fine with either option, it wasn't like it was his only choice.

The _Mana Grenade_ arced through the air, followed closely by a veritable hail of gunfire, and the explosion was simply drowned out, despite the fact that it did a not so insignificant amount of damage, outright taking a leg from one of the regular Beowolves that backed up the Malignant Beowolf, but considering the size of the canine monster, it didn't appear to do all that much in the grand scheme of things.

It reared back, claws sharper than Jaune had ever seen, fangs glistening with spittle, standing at an imposing height that was three times the size of the biggest Beowolf Jaune had ever seen before, and howled, a keening sound that threatened to pierce his eardrums.

A signal for the Beowolves to push the attack, and that was exactly what they did, rushing forwards in a medley of claws, spikes, howls and death, closing in further and further to the group.

It was thanks to Weiss that they found themselves delayed, a wall of ice spikes holding back their attack as some found themselves impaled upon them in the fleshy mass that was the approaching horde.

All the while, the Malignant Beowolf stood on its hind legs, staring down at the eight Hunters-in-training with a look of indifference on its bestial face.

Jaune didn't like that it was sitting back and wearing them out with smaller, weaker enemies, but he had to admit, it was better than fighting it at the same time as the amorphous blob of Beowolves that had started scaling the slanted icicles, eyes red with fury as they left those Grimm-like traces through the air.

A horizontal _Mana Slash_ dissuaded a few of the Beowolves from continuing their charge up and over the frozen spikes, but it was nowhere near enough to dissuade all of them. Every time one fell, another would take its place.

It was a little confusing, because Jaune swore there had not been this many Beowolves in the pack that had appeared originally.

Unless…

Jaune took another glance at the Malignant Beowolf just in time to see a splotch of black goo hit the ground, a pack of Beowolves clawing their way out of the rapidly decaying muck.

"It's spawning Beowolves!" Jaune shouted, hitting an Alpha with a _Mana Lance_ as he did so, pinning it to a tree behind the Malignant Beowolf.

Another clump of charcoal-colored muck hit the ground to bring forth more Beowolves, but Jaune was ready, a _Jump_ taking him up into the air, where he then used _Surface Walk_ to stick to the side of the cliff, already aiming.

He needed something for crowd control, that was quite obvious now, and in hindsight, he honestly would have wondered why he hadn't thought about that before now, if he had the free time. A quick sheathing of Crocea Mors led to him having two free hands, and he outstretched one, channelling Mana into his hand, and felt its shape, manipulating it to a degree he'd never really been able to achieve before, not without the experience and time he'd spent with the System.

He shaped it, formed it, and fired it.

A bolt of Mana shot forth, hitting a Beowolf in the chest and sticking, and Jaune watched as tendrils sprung forth from the Mana, latching onto nearby Beowolves and slowing them down, drawing them inwards towards the original target of the spell.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Tether (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can throw a burst of Mana which will chain to other hostiles, dealing damage and slowing hostiles. Targets tethered by Mana Tether take additional damage. Costs 80 MP to cast._ _ **Level 1; 0/12 XP.**_ **]**

Jaune cast another few _Mana Tethers_ from his outlook on the cliffside, watching as clumps of the Beowolves began to get pulled together.

They made for good targets for another new spell. Jaune formed a _Mana Pulse_ , charging it until he could feel the Mana ready to fire, and then, before firing it, he began to condense it.

He'd never tried to compact this much Mana before, and he could feel the pressure it was resisting with, pushing back against his hands.

Then he released it, and watched it hit the first cluster of tethered Beowolves.

And effectively obliterated the cluster of snarling, snapping Grimm.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Cannon (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can fire a projectile of Mana that deals incredible damage, but has a considerable charge-up time and requires you to not move whilst charging. Costs 250 MP to cast._ _ **Level 1; 0/12 XP.**_ **]**

"Woah!" Jaune exclaimed, hand steaming from the superheated air. That had been a powerful spell.

It had also cost him an eighth of his total Mana, to be fair, and when you considered exactly how much Mana he had at his disposal that wasn't anything to joke about.

Jaune could move once more, though, no longer locked down by the charging of his _Mana Cannon_ , and he was quick to do so, drawing Crocea Mors and his shield and _Jumping_ forwards, leaping off the wall and drawing Mana into his feet, a _Mana Impact_ sending shudders through the ground as he effectively liquefied another group of tethered Beowolves, Pyrrha leaping over his head and stabbing the remaining Alpha, a spin decapitating another that had gotten too close.

They needed to push their attack, Jaune knew, and he was glad his partner was as aware of that fact as much as he was, and it appeared that the rest of AWBN and all of RRYN knew it too, pushing forwards into the thinning horde.

All they had to do was kill more Beowolves than the Malignant Beowolf could spawn, and it would be problem solved.

Well, it wouldn't be the entire problem solved, they would still have to kill the damn thing, but it was better than having to deal with all of them at the same time.

Jaune watched as Cadejo latched onto an Alpha and bit down hard, another copy of Cadejo doing much the same, and soon the Cadejo Pack had taken three Alphas down, already moving to their fourth target.

On the opposite side of him Callisto, her massive paws simply knocking aside anything that got close to breaking through her line of defense, Ren and Blake next to the bear, their guns spitting out round after round at anything that Callisto missed.

Another barrage of feathers from Alcmena let Jaune know that she was as angry at herself as Jaune was at himself for getting complacent, the avian summon taking out her frustration on the lupine Grimm around the edges of the horde.

Electrus was a little harder to get a reading on, as it was technically a sentient pile of floating crystals, but Weiss seemed to be quite capable of fighting alongside it, and Jaune watched in surprise as she placed a hand on it's arm, a glowing yellow Glyph appearing above a cluster of Beowolves, and the scent of charcoal grilled Grimm filled the air quickly as the Glyph discharged.

Yang and Pyrrha were leading the charge, one on either of his flanks, the two front-liners dishing out punishment to anything that stepped too close, and as Jaune led what had quickly formed to be a wedge shape, he was glad to have the two to back him up.

An explosion went off on the face of the Malignant Beowolf, the beast roaring in pain as it shook its head, clearing its vision of the pink smoke, only to find itself in even more pain as a massive bullet took a tooth from the inside of its mouth, rupturing the side of its face on its way out.

That accounted for Ruby and Nora, at least.

Unfortunately for everyone, though, the Malignant Beowolf was no longer willing to stand by and take the punishment.

It moved.

Jaune felt something disappear from his senses.

There was something almost ethereal with the Malignant Beowolf as it reappeared in front of him, massive claws tearing through the air as they struck Jaune's shield, knocking him backwards and into the air, where he soared over the top of the heads of everyone, landing with a sickening crack against the cliff-face as his Aura dipped hard, air rushing out of his lungs from the impact.

He didn't fall from the cliff, either. The force had actually driven him into the rock with enough force that he was secure.

A quick glance at his meters as he regained his breath was enough to tell him that another hit like that would break his Aura, having lost a little over half of it in the single attack.

That wasn't what worried Jaune the most, though. What worried him was that he had the largest amount of Aura out of everyone. If they got hit, it'd go straight through.

They'd die.

Jaune was quick to move, Crocea Mors in hand.

The beast had made it personal, now. Jaune was mad.

Where this anger had come from he didn't really know, he'd never been an angry person before, but now…

Jaune _Flash Stepped_ out of the hole in the wall and quickly cast _Power_ and _Enduring_ on himself as he landed on the ground, _Shield Bashing_ a Beowolf who stepped forwards to interrupt him, knocking it back far enough that he had the room to _Flash Step_ a second time, launching up into the air at the Malignant Beowolf, which had gotten closer since he'd been knocked aside.

It hadn't expected Jaune to be in its face so quickly, and it took a half-step back, only to get the entire blade of Crocea Mors across its face in a devastating slash, sending it reeling, as it brought its lanky arms up to block the follow-up strike.

The second slash struck bone plating, but still cut deep enough to wedge the blade in, and Jaune clutched it, using it to swivel himself so that he could place his feet on the underside of the Malignant Beowolf's arm, a quick _Surface Walk_ keeping him affixed to the arm as he used the newly-gained leverage to yank Crocea Mors free, before driving it down once more on the same spot.

Weakened, damaged bone gave way to thick black flesh as the arm found itself missing a hand as Crocea Mors cut clean through, the Malignant Beowolf howling in agony and swinging its other arm at him.

Jaune released the _Surface Walk_ , dropping beneath the swinging claw and landing with a roll, courtesy of _Rolling Recovery_.

The Malignant Beowolf was suitably crippled now, roaring and howling in shock and pain, swinging wildly without really looking at what it was aiming at. Jaune watched with morbid amusement as an Alpha Beowolf suddenly found itself pancaked against a tree.

Seven other people opened fire on the rampaging Grimm, and Jaune joined in the gunfire and Dust projectiles with his own unique brand of weapon.

Round after round after round of _Lightning Infused Spinning Mana Bullet_ hit the Malignant Beowolf, and under the onslaught, it dropped to one knee, remaining hand hitting the ground to keep it upright enough to look Jaune in the eyes and snarl.

The onslaught stopped for a single moment, and Jaune released his just-charged _Mana Cannon_ into the Malignant Beowolf's face, taking a moment to admire the charred crater that it left in its wake.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 2,817,990 XP!]**

 **[You gained 24,700 Lien, 39 Inert Dust, 9 Beowolf Pelts, 24 Beowolf Claws, 8 Beowolf Skulls, 2 Alpha Beowolf Pelts, 10 Alpha Beowolf Claws, 4 Alpha Beowolf Skulls, 9 Abiare Herbs, 1 Minor Potion of Mana, 3 Grade II Water Dust Crystals, Tranquility PACK.]**

 **[You've reached Level 41! +20 Stat Points!]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[For killing your first Tier 4 Enemy, you have been awarded a special item: Abominae Mask.]**

 **[You've gained a new title!]**

 **[Mage Initiate:** _Gain +10% XP for Magic Skills._ _ **(INT 50/60, WIS 50/60)**_ **]**

Jaune let the surge of information wash over him as he slumped over, leaning against the handle of Crocea Mors, blade planted into the ground.

The others looked about as exhausted as he did, which, to be fair, was completely understandable.

"Where did that thing come from?" Yang asked, laid out flat on her back on the ground, panting heavily.

Jaune didn't really have an answer for her. "I don't know. Alcmena didn't see it, Cadejo barely picked it up until it was really close. And the way it moved…"

One moment Jaune had been fighting Beowolves, the next he'd made a human-shaped crater in the cliff-face.

The teen stretched his arms at the memory of the crushing impact, internally wincing as he remembered exactly what it felt like.

Not that he hadn't experienced worse injuries, of course.

"It kind of blended in with the smoke it gave off. Grimm, with semblances?" Weiss vocalized, one foot out of her heeled boot, rubbing at her ankle.

"I just wonder why it went after Jaune, out of all of us. He wasn't even the one that pissed it off," Blake commented, staring at the smoking carcass.

"Probably my semblance. Either they can sense it, or it went after the one with the biggest Aura, or because I was at the front of the formation. Who knows?" Jaune replied, sheathing his blade.

"Sorry about making it mad, Jaune! Nora and I figured it was a sitting duck, so…" Ruby said, rushing over to the blond teen. "Are you okay?"

With a nod, Jaune accepted her apology hug. "I'm fine. Dented my Aura a little, but no harm no foul."

A glance at her scroll told Pyrrha that Jaune was playing it down. "Fifty percent gone, Jaune? In one hit? That's a little more than a dent."

Jaune shrugged. "A really big dent, then. I'm fine, and it isn't like I can't take it. Worst comes to worst my Aura breaks, and I have to regenerate from an injury."

Ruby glared at him. "You need to avoid getting hurt! We all need to avoid getting hurt!"

Jaune couldn't find anything feasible to use to disagree with, not that he looked all that hard in the first place. "You do realise I'm not actively seeking out pain and injuries, right? They kind of just happen."

"Well, I'm heading back up to Beacon. As much as I appreciate the scenery, it has been somewhat ruined, and I think I need to clean up," Weiss said, sliding her boot back on. "Anyone else coming?"

A chorus of replies came, and Jaune was quick to politely refuse. "I've still got some work I want to do down here, and I might as well do it now. I doubt we'll see anything nearly as threatening as that Malignant Beowolf, so I'll be fine."

Everyone began making their way up the staircase, except Ruby, even though she'd said she would be heading back up.

Jaune quirked an eyebrow at her, curious. "Thought you were heading back up?"

Ruby didn't reply, instead grabbing him by the collar and dragging his head down to her eye level.

"Promise me you'll stay safe?" She asked, an intensity in her silver eyes that Jaune had never really seen before, especially not so close.

"I promise," He replied.

Her smile was back, the intensity gone, and she rested her forehead against his, eyes closing.

He closed his eyes as well, enjoying the moment for what it was, before he felt the contact break, and a new contact against his lips.

It was brief, a gentle kiss that barely touched, and then Ruby was gone, leaving a cloud of scattering rose petals in her wake.

Jaune was left standing in the clearing, wearing a look of surprise.

A dopey smile on his face.

* * *

 **Man, I'm pretty happy with this chapter. Couldn't figure out how to end it for the longest time, so I just kept writing. Then, things all worked out. As it seems to do whenever I write. I accidentally write plot hooks, I swear.**

 **Alright, last chapter I asked for reader-submitted characters for the Vytal Tournament, and was then inundated by submissions, so here's the current standing for the characters.**

 **Ase Rine with Tenebrae Umbra, Wolfsige Noctus, Lazarus Morningstar and Tristessa Vespera of Team TWLT, from Atlas Academy.  
**

 **sairen629 with Nabala Emeraude of Team ENVY, from Beacon Academy.**

 **razmire with Nero Vince Green of Team ENVY.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman with Veema Lotion and Ymil Dosza of Team ENVY.**

 **ragnarok042501 with Ulysses Demos of Team DMND, from Atlas Academy.**

 **Antonio Morningstar and Dominic Steel of Team DMND.**

 **Kyanos Nachten with Yanos Nachten of Team DMND.**

 **Thank you everyone for all your submissions, I really appreciate it, and if yours isn't here, or has been changed somewhat, just understand that I've done my best to fit them all together, and this was the best order I could realistically get to fit. I still appreciate all of the names, though, and they may end up popping up later on in Systema.**

 **As for other teams with absent characters, I've taken the liberty of filling them in, like Penny's team, and I've taken and adjusted some stuff for other teams, but it all ends up with a fully established Vytal Tournament, so when we get to it, well, it'll be good. I hope.**

 **Now, reviews!**

 **splithaven: Why does that sound vaguely ominous?!**

 **lordrednight: I'm glad at least you like the name. I feel like it's quite... 50/50, I guess?**

 **drannakka: Damn. That sounds awesome. Though there's a whole 'binding actual people souls' thing to worry about, though I imagine Dr Polendina has already committed that particular crime.**

 **Kalaong: I'm not sure where you'd find one, but I did design The System with point-dumping to be rather difficult. Super-intelligence is great, but for Jaune, it'd take a good bit of work to get there. Especially considering that 100 INT isn't max, and 100 INT also makes you above-average intelligence. No inventing FTL travel just yet. If I got one, well, I'd probably max CHA. Doesn't matter how smart or strong you are if you can convince everyone to do things for you. Easy peasy, if manipulative as all hell.**

 **jedimasterb10: Those are all excellent ideas. A shame I'm not General Ironwood, isn't it. And, I think it's safe to say that Ruby and Jaune had some fun.**

 **typhonyx: Well, I can't say it was most, considering the chapter length. Oh well? I also have like no experience writing or even really reading fluff, so it's a learning experience.**

 **Shadow of God: Sometimes, we have to do things that hurt us. Like taking a particularly foul-tasting pill, or admitting that we don't know what we're doing. Or naming something so bad that it actively makes you laugh at your own stupidity.**

 **dirtrevor: Blacksmithing is rolled into Crafting, thankfully, so I can absolutely confirm that will be happening. Unless the Vytal Tournament goes south. If it does, well, we'll just have to see, won't we.**

 **IcyStream: Technically the Area Acquisition only works after getting it, and activates when an encounter is complete. So, he'd still have to find the stuff. Still, maybe one day?**

 **Guest: To be fair, a lot of the semblances are self-explanatory, to the point where if I did have them explain, it wouldn't really add anything to the story, and would just be exposition for the sake of exposition. At some point later down the line I'll do some explanation in regards to them, but there'll be a reason for that.**

 **Zathol: Figured you'd be happy with that.**

 **armentho: You practically read my mind when you mentioned Elder Grimm, though the way I've applied them is a little different. Elder is the typical term for Tier 2 Grimm, with Epic being Tier 3, Malignant being Tier 4, and Ancient being Tier 5. I did like what you suggested with traits, and I've decided to develop on that idea, so I'll be trying out a few things in regards to that. Variant variants, I guess? I should point out, though, that the characters may be a little different. I won't be going all out to change them, of course, but if they seem a little OOC, consider that deliberate. So if Roman or Neo seem a little different, it's probably just that I'm flexing my creative license a bit. Lastly, a really big fucking hole, coming right up. (Yeah, I added thermite to the spreadsheet, it's under Alchemy now. So, at some point, we may see it.**

 **And that about does it for reviews this week! Before I go, I have a twitter fat_flying, and a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale, so if you wanna support me, please feel free! It has rewards!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	44. You Must Wear A Hard Hat To Read This

**Not my best chapter, I have to admit, but I had to get something out nonetheless. Enjoy?**

* * *

Jaune was digging again.

He'd been digging for some hours, in fact. Mind almost blank, face expressionless, hand against stone.

He'd finished the rough carve of the entire first floor, now, and had just moved onto the basement, which was actually easier. He didn't really have to worry about anything but structural integrity to avoid a cave in.

The solution to that had just been support pillars, so it wasn't even that difficult a problem to overcome.

He'd roughly carved out the center part to the basement workshop too, now, and was working away.

He didn't quite know what time it was, though. Not without checking a clock. Granted, he had a clock in his peripheral vision at all times, but that required moving his eyes.

The thing about being underground was that you lose all sense of time. It could be a minute, it could be ten, it could be five hours. Who really knew?

A _Candlelight_ hovered behind Jaune, silently judging his choice of thoughts.

It was the only source of illumination down here, and Jaune was thankful for it, no matter how judgmental it was.

It wasn't at all judgmental, it was a floating ball of light, but sometimes, Jaune could swear it was doing just that, judging him.

Silently, softly, reviewing every choice he made.

Jaune needed to either finish the Arcave and stick lights in it, or get outside for some fresher air, because despite how surprisingly decent his ventilation system had been thus far, there was only so much he could stand to have the flickering, occasionally wandering light source hovering behind him.

Sunlight, or moonlight, depending on the time, would be a welcome respite.

Even artificial light from a lamp or a fluorescent bulb would be greatly appreciated.

Maybe, dare he say, a _Mana Flash_?

He shot that thought down with rapid, extreme prejudice. ' _No, Jaune, don't flashbang yourself again. Can you go stir-crazy from excavating earth?'_

He had to imagine that you could, in fact, go stir-crazy from constant carving through rock.

He resolved himself to finish the project, though. He was so damn close now, stopping would only make it harder on himself to find the time to pick it back up.

Which wasn't true, of course, he was just arguing any point he could in order to convince his somewhat deluded mind that he had to finish it tonight, no matter the time it would take.

So, Jaune continued to dig.

* * *

He'd done it. The Arcave, it was complete.

Well, completely carved out and neatened.

Turned out the neatening part was surprisingly simple work, easier than clearing what amounted to at least fifty tons of stone.

Definitely more than fifty, now that he thought about it.

The basement was all ventilated, and he'd added two extra rooms, one as a little reactor-esq room for the Energy Dust Crystals, and one that was more of an extension of one wall rather than a new room. The arms convention in Vale had given him the seed of the idea, and the free time to think had given it the time to bloom.

A firing range. Not a large one, of course, but it was still enough that you could get some somewhat decent range. Nothing like what Ruby would find challenging with Crescent Rose, but something that might be found in a small store. Or the convention, but that was more of a temporary situation, so it was fair to say that had a little less to live up to.

Another thing had happened during his excavation, a gift pretending to be a minor snag.

Whilst excavating the firing range, he'd discovered a chunk of rock that, no matter how hard he tried, he could not manipulate with _Terrakinesis_. A few minutes of testing had led to no real conclusion, so he figured he'd wait until someone more knowledgeable took a look at it.

Now, Jaune had a number of things he could tick off of his mental to-do list. The next step was wiring everything, and figuring out plumbing. Something a few hours of browsing the CCTnet couldn't teach him.

You could find anything on there nowadays.

That would be tomorrow, though. Not tonight. It was late, despite the fact that he was refusing to look at his HUD clock. Maybe if he didn't look he'd be wrong, and it would actually be earlier.

Couldn't hurt to try, at least. Weirder things had happened.

Technically, weirder things were happening.

Jaune emerged from the Arcave, emitting a slight snigger at the name, before replacing his expression with a straight face.

It was night, he could tell from the fact that the sun wasn't in the sky and the shattered moon was instead taking its place as a temporary means of providing minor illumination to the surrounding clearing.

Jaune was very tired.

He was rambling because of this fact, a fact that he was becoming more and more unable to deny.

So, in order to prevent himself from A; being tired and B; rambling, Jaune decided that he would go up to his dorm, and go to bed.

The Arcave would be there tomorrow, it wasn't like it was suddenly going to sprout legs and wander off.

Weirder things had happened, though.

* * *

"The Vytal Tournament begins in one week, students! I understand that for some of you there have been a number of interruptions, but make sure that your team's application is submitted if you wish to participate! That will be all!"

Finally, class was over.

It had been some time since Jaune had actually sat in class, and he'd almost forgotten what it felt like. Watching other people fight with mediocre skill had very limited entertainment value.

Now that he understood a lot of the intricacies of combat, at least. Back before he'd had his semblance, he would've been entranced, but now, well…

Now watching someone miss with a hatchet as another person missed with their halberd at the same time didn't quite have the same lustre.

He was currently walking out of class with the rest of AWBN, RRYN tagging along as usual, something that had become such a common sight that it would have been a seriously strange situation if they were seen doing anything else.

Once again planning on heading to their typical spot, the clearing out the front of the Arcave, they stepped outside into the fresh air, reveling in the mid-afternoon breeze, only to suddenly come face to face with a crowd of people.

"Uhh…" Jaune began, using his height to peer over the top of the other students.

People quickly parted, a thing Jaune made the mistake of not doing, as he suddenly found himself hit with a body, sixth sense triggering at the time of the impact, doing absolutely nothing to provide any kind of forewarning necessary to avoid said impact.

The tangle of limbs that hit him drove him into the paving, the smell of alcohol following suit as the man who'd hit him clambered to his feet, paying Jaune no attention as his gleaming sword blocked the blade of a woman who looked a whole lot like an older Weiss.

"Winter?!" Weiss exclaimed, lending credence to Jaune's preliminary theory.

"Uncle Qrow?!" Ruby and Yang cried out in surprise at the same time, giving Jaune a pretty clear idea of who it was that had been rammed into him at surprisingly rapid velocity.

"Ow…" Jaune let out, Ren offering him a hand, quickly pulling him to his feet.

The two, Winter and Qrow, stared each other down, one wearing an expression Jaune recognized from Weiss, the other a look so smug it was almost like looking at a male version of Yang.

Familial resemblance was certainly apparent, to say the least.

"Branwen, Schnee! What do you think you're doing?!"

Finally, a voice of reason Jaune could recognize.

General James Ironwood, with Professor Goodwitch and Headmaster Ozpin in tow.

"General, sir! He started the altercation!" Winter quickly let out, her salute following the sheathing of her blades.

Qrow stepped past the elder Schnee. "Nah, that's not true."

"Regardless of who started it, I believe you both owe an apology to Mr Arc. Considering you practically gave him reason to taste pavement," Ozpin remarked with a wry smile, mug in hand.

Light blue and red eyes met Jaune's own, and all who were a part of the crowd watched in mild amusement as Jaune's hand came up to the back of his head, scratching away an imagined itch.

"Eh, he'll live," Qrow said, looking back to Ozpin. "He's supposed to be a Hunter, right?"

Winter didn't even deign him with a response, instead turning to the General. "My sincerest apologies, sir. It won't happen again."

Ironwood let out a slight sigh, walking past the gathered group. "Come, Specialist. We have a briefing."

Weiss watched on, stunned, as her sister paid her no attention, instead walking past, following the General.

Ozpin followed the General. "You too, Qrow. You can speak with your nieces afterwards."

Qrow rolled his eyes. "I'll catch up with kiddos later. I think I might be in trouble."

Red eyes met blue once more on the way past, and Jaune was hit with a burst of nostalgia. An old memory, from the beginning of Beacon, burst forth from the depths of his mind into the forefront, and Jaune shivered involuntarily.

And, as they walked away, Jaune observed them both.

 **[Winter Schnee]**

 **[Glass Soldier]**

 **[Level 62]**

 **[Qrow Branwen]**

 **[Bad Luck Charm]**

 **[Level 71]**

"So…" Blake began, somewhat confused. "What just happened?"

Yang spoke up. "Knowing Uncle Qrow, he probably started it."

Ruby nodded in agreement. "Probably would've won, too."

Weiss scoffed. "A draw at best. Winter did appear to be winning."

The blond teen wasn't paying any attention, still watching the assembled group walk away.

That look Qrow had given him… it was just like the look Ozpin had given him when they'd first met.

That look always meant bad news.

* * *

"So, that's the kid?"

Qrow leaned against a column in Ozpin's office, a flask in his hand, waiting for a response.

"Indeed, Qrow. Mr Arc is 'the kid', as you so inadequately put it," Ozpin replied, a touch of humor in his voice.

"And we know he's on our side?" Qrow asked, the next question on what was starting to look like a long list.

"I can confirm that, somewhat. Arc and his team were invaluable members of Operation Kingslayer, as was your niece's team," Ironwood interjected.

"Not to mention your niece's judgement of character. Both of them, actually. Mr Arc can be trusted to do what is right," Ozpin said, before sipping from his mug. "It may come as a shock to you, Qrow, but not every wielder of the System is selfish and dangerous."

Qrow shrugged. "Give it time. I'll be right again."

"Mr Arc is not what we called you in for, though. Amber's condition is worsening, and our enemy is at the gates, their moves more and more brash as the days pass by. We need you in the city, on guard. The penultimate move comes sooner than later, no doubt, and I, no, we need to be ready," Ozpin continued, waving aside Qrow's concerns. "James and I want you and Specialist Schnee to work together on patrolling."

Qrow looked at his flask, inspecting its contents for any potential meddling. "I dunno if you saw what she did when she saw me. I can't be held responsible for all the property damage all the time, you know."

"Qrow, you're almost always responsible for property damage," Goodwitch remarked dryly, staring at the alcoholic Hunter, who was mid-gulp.

"Almost."

Ozpin ignored Qrow, turning to the General. "If you'd like to bring Specialist Schnee in now, James?"

Ironwood nodded, opening the door to a somewhat huffy Winter Schnee, who quickly concealed her attitude, snapping a salute. "Sir."

"Come inside, Specialist. We're about to begin your briefing."

Winter quickly stepped into the office, sending a glare at Qrow as he stared at her, one eyebrow quirked.

"It is a pleasure to properly meet you in person, Specialist Schnee," Ozpin began, holding out his hand. "James has said many a good thing about you and your performance, and I hope that will not change in the face of potential adversity."

Winter took the extended hand and shook it in a firm grip, before releasing and folding her arms behind her back. "Thank you Headmaster. It will be a pleasure to work with you."

Qrow snorted.

Another glare sent his way, Winter turned back to the men she actually respected. "What will you have me do?"

Ironwood took over. "Recently, incursions from criminal elements have ramped up in frequency and capability, and Ozpin and I believe that an attack is imminent. However, with the recent attacks having been reasonably successful, the Valean Council has seen fit to relegate us to a more defensive position, and considering the Daedalus is still undergoing repairs from Operation Kingslayer, we wouldn't be able to commit to a full attack even if we could. The repairs will be finished soon enough, of course, before the beginning of the Vytal Tournament, but regardless, we do not know enough about our enemy to make any concise strikes, were we even allowed."

Ozpin spoke up. "That is why both you, Specialist Schnee, and you, Qrow Branwen, are being tasked with investigating and tracking down any potential threats, off the books. The Council mustn't know about this, as they have effectively barricaded us from making any retaliatory moves. Do you both understand?"

"Yes sir!" Winter uttered, standing up straight.

"Yeah, yeah, sure," Qrow muttered, taking another gulp of the flask's contents.

Ironwood hid a smile. "Good, because you'll be working together."

Suddenly, Winter's enthusiasm dropped a level, and the temperature in the office dropped by a good few degrees as the icy cold glare that Winter leveled at Qrow was made all the more clear by the resounding silence that followed Ironwood's statement.

"Is that a problem, Specialist?" Ironwood asked, looking to the elder Schnee sibling.

"No, sir. I just dislike the idea."

Ironwood accepted the answer as far more civil than he was expecting, though considering the young woman's position and his own, it made sense. "Glad to hear that your personal feelings will not get in the way of the mission. I expect the same of you, Qrow."

Qrow shrugged. "I'm not the one that starts a fight every time we see each other."

Winter looked like she was physically restraining herself from strangling the man.

"Behave yourself, Qrow," Ozpin ordered, though the seriousness was somewhat defeated by the small smirk the older man wore. "It would be best if the two of you settle your differences once and for all. James is right when he says that this is a serious situation. Many, many lives are at stake, and Qrow, you know the consequences better than anyone."

The grizzled alcoholic's eyes met the ground with an intense stare.

"That will be all, Specialist," Ironwood said.

"Thank you, Qrow," Ozpin said immediately after.

Both stood with a momentary lack of movement, before Glynda spoke. "I believe that's professional code for 'go away now'."

Qrow let out another snort of laughter. "After you, Ice Queen."

Ironwood watched as Winter's hand twitched at her blade, hovering less than an inch away from it, but the woman thought through her options, and resolved herself to instead step out of the office, heading towards the elevator, Qrow following suit.

The door closed once more, leaving them alone.

"What're the chances that Qrow picks a fight with Arc before he picks another fight with Schnee?" Ironwood said aloud.

"No bet," Glynda replied.

Ozpin smiled a rare smile. "Fifty Lien that Qrow ends up liking Arc."

The two men placed their fifty Lien cards on the table.

Glynda sighed.

* * *

Winter was silent.

Qrow was not.

"Relax, Ice Queen, we're going to go see your sister and my nieces now. No business yet, so we don't have to worry about pretending to be civil."

Winter let out a deep sigh. "At least you admit to it being a pretense."

Qrow shrugged. "What can I say, I've got more important things on my mind. Like finding out exactly what the firecracker meant when she said that Ruby was dating."

Winter, for once, lost her composure, raising an eyebrow at the older man. "You, the grumpy strict uncle? I never would have guessed."

"Grumpy and strict? Nah. Protective? Hell yeah."

That made more sense. Winter couldn't really figure out why she hadn't assumed that in the first place.

Despite herself, she couldn't help but ask. "Who do you think it is?"

Qrow shrugged. "Either your sister or the Arc kid. Then again, who really knows these days? Could be that Nikos kid for all I know."

Winter was suddenly hit by a flash, a mental image proving nearly too much for her, as the idea of a really young Qrow dating her sister pushed its way past any and all of her mental barriers.

"You alright, Ice Queen? Lookin' a little pale there, more so than usual."

The elevator dinged, fresh air flooding the metal box as Winter quickly stepped out, taking a deep breath to clear her mind.

"Eh, you'll live. Dorms are this way."

Winter allowed herself to follow the man that smelt like he'd tripped and fallen into the entire stock of a bar at the same time as he led her towards the only person outside of the military that she could actually stand to be around.

* * *

The dorms were devoid of any of the five students that might lead them to the other three they were seeking, which meant that, through deductive reasoning, that they were all together somewhere.

Qrow was a little confused by that. Sure, he knew what it was like to have a sister team, but as far as he remembered, STRQ had rarely gone anywhere but their dorms.

He doubted they were in Vale, too, otherwise Yang or Ruby would've at least felt the need to tell him. And, if and/or when they forgot to do that, at least the mini Ice Queen could be relied upon to update her sister on her whereabouts.

A quick scroll message to the firecracker had him somewhat confused. "They're all in the Emerald Forest?"

Winter heard his utterance, another raised eyebrow breaking through her stoic expression.

Qrow shrugged in response, a little too confused to be able to fire back with his usual wit.

It took next to no time to reach Beacon's cliffs, a massive blast of nostalgia hitting Qrow as he reached them.

A swig quickly had his attention directed elsewhere, and it soon found itself directed at Winter as she noticed something.

"A staircase? It's… carved into the cliff itself…"

Qrow frowned. "That wasn't there the last time I was."

Winter frowned at him. "So it appeared within the past thirty years."

Qrow rolled his eyes. "I'm not that old, Ice Queen."

Winter ignored his response, peering over the side. "It would appear that they are down in the clearing at the base of the cliff."

Qrow joined the woman in looking off the edge. "Huh. Not a bad spot, actually. Wish we'd thought of that."

Winter was already on her way down the steps, so naturally Qrow decided instead he'd just jump, plummeting towards the clearing with absolute disregard for Winter, landing hard, Aura pooling in his feet.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby shouted, already rocketing towards him.

He felt absolutely no impact, or so it would appear, as Ruby latched onto his arm, hanging there. "Did'ja miss me?"

He ruffled her hair. "Nope."

Yang walked up to him next, wrapping an arm around him briefly. "Hey there firecracker. Keeping out of trouble?"

Yang was ever-quick with her reply. "Nope."

"Good to hear."

Ruby quickly detached herself, gesturing to the rest of the assembled group. "Uncle Qrow! This is Ren, Nora, Blake, Weiss, and Pyrrha!"

A chorus of introductions followed, and Qrow paid them absolutely no attention, instead turning his attention to his youngest niece. "Which one did Yang say you were dating?"

Yang, realizing she'd been thrown under the bus, quickly glanced at Qrow, noticed his smirk, and paled.

"It's not what you think Rubes…" Yang began, only to have her sister tackle her to the ground with surprising power.

"Traitor!" Ruby began with a shout. "You betrayed the sisterhood!"

A blond head poked out of a doorway in the cliff that Qrow hadn't noticed before, and he suddenly found himself the center of attention.

"You, Arc, right?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, I'm Jaune Arc. The guy you crushed earlier."

The kid was surprisingly snarkier than Qrow had expected, or been told.

"Eh, you'll live, I'm sure. You dating my niece?"

Qrow watched with satisfaction as the color drained from his face. "I- uh… we, um… yes?"

Yang, still on the ground, shook her head in defeat. He'd brought this upon himself.

"And you didn't think to ask anyone's permission?" Qrow asked, taking a step closer.

Suddenly, Jaune found himself a backbone. "No, because I didn't need to. Ruby's her own person, capable of making her own decisions."

Qrow shook his head. "I didn't say Ruby couldn't date you, kid. I said you couldn't date Ruby. There's a difference."

"There is?!" Ruby exclaimed, looking at her uncle. "Since when?"

Qrow rolled his eyes. "Since I decided there was, kiddo."

"I can't help but feel like that isn't quite fair," Jaune offered, slowly backing away.

"Nuh-uh. It ain't, but life ain't fair either, is it?"

It was almost worse for Jaune that he agreed with the man on that point.

"Better get your weapon, kid."

With that, Qrow leapt forwards, Harbinger angled towards Jaune, blade glistening in the afternoon sun.

Jaune brought his shield up, metal clanging against metal as Qrow's sword impacted hard, and Jaune felt his knees buckle as his feet were driven an inch into the dirt.

Jaune expected another blow, he did, but the sudden delivery of a right cross from Ruby seemed to dissuade Qrow from dishing it out, the older man staring in surprise at the red-cloaked girl that had just socked him in the jaw.

"Huh."

"Stop being so mean, Uncle Qrow! Jaune doesn't deserve it!" Ruby exclaimed.

"Gotta agree with Rubes on this one, Uncle Qrow," Yang said, lifting herself from the ground, brushing herself off. "Jaune's been nothing but a good friend, and not just to Ruby."

"So it isn't just me you act so unpleasant towards. What a wonderful first impression, Qrow."

"Winter! It's good to see you!" Weiss was quick to step over to her sister.

"Hello, dear sister. How are you?"

Jaune had to practically condition himself to ignore that conversation, because Qrow still hadn't put away the sword.

And Jaune then watched as the older man's demeanor changed completely, a smirk growing on his face. "Relax, kids. I'm just testing his reflexes and attitude. Nothin' to worry about."

Ruby seemed to accept the excuse for what it was, but Jaune met the man's eyes.

There was a look there, one he could barely recognize. Loathing, pain, suffering… familiarity?

Jaune didn't know how to react to that.

"Look, I can make it up to you Rubes, for attacking your boyfriend. I brought all your stuff from your Dad's?"

Qrow made it sound like a suggestion, and it took Ruby almost half a second to realize what he meant.

"Wait, you were the one Dad sent with my workshop!?" Surprisingly, Ruby seemed almost distraught. "What have you done!?"

Qrow seemed to revel in her misfortune. "It's fine, kiddo, what's the worst that could happen?"

Ruby didn't appear to be listening. "My poor, delicate instruments!"

"Your poor delicate instruments that were sitting and gathering dust in the back of an old shed."

Ruby opened her mouth to object, and instead decided to throw her sister under the bus in revenge. "Yang's got a girlfriend too, Uncle Qrow. Can you go attack her and leave me and Jaune to unpack the workshop?"

Qrow just laughed. "You think I care who Firecracker's dating? Couldn't give two craps about her teenage drama."

A faint "suck it Rubes!" was heard over the pout that Qrow was suddenly under attack by, his niece's expression weakening his rather limited emotional defenses.

"Alright, fine! Enough with the puppy dog look. I'll leave you and scrawny to plug in crap. Though… where are you putting it?"

Jaune, finally getting an opportunity to speak, answered. "Inside the Arcave."

The disappointed stare he received made him wince.

* * *

Jaune heaved, arms tensed as he put all his strength into lifting the massive metal and brick structure that he'd had to make an entirely new entrance to the workshop for.

"Last one, Jaune!" Ruby cheered him on from in front, acting as his guide, as he couldn't actually see past what he was carrying.

Aura burned at the tips of his arms, glowing bright white at his fingertips and slowly fading as it went up his arms.

Then, his guide stepped back, into his periphery, and gave him a thumbs-up, so he placed the structure onto the ground, letting out an exhalation of relief as he did so, already panting.

Others gathered around, taking in the somewhat-completed workshop for the first time.

Machinery and worktables littered the place, a tool rack Jaune had effectively had to carve a special mechanism to hang it onto the wall acting more like decoration than an actual tool rack, because the box of tools were sat next to it, still waiting to be unpacked.

Jaune had just placed down the forge, which, according to Ruby, was used to melt down metals.

The ramp to the outside let in a pleasant amount of sunlight, not enough to completely illuminate the basement floor, but enough that they were at least able to see, and Jaune had a _Candlelight_ doing whatever he needed it to do, thankfully without the judgmental attitude this time.

The wiring was done, though, all Jaune had to do was hook up the Energy Dust Crystals, install lights, have it all plumbed, get furniture, and figure out how to get a door big enough to cover what was effectively the new entrance to the workshop.

He'd received a message from Master Engineer Sam Wright earlier, halfway through shifting a grinder into its position, and he'd read it thoroughly, somewhat surprised at its contents.

The deposit he'd given had effectively paid for a bunch of equipment that Jaune hadn't even heard of before, and some that he had. An ammunition bench, a chemistry station, a circuit fabricator, all sorts of things that were going to be delivered to Beacon by the end of the next day.

Ruby, well, Jaune didn't think he'd ever seen her so excited. It was infectious, and from the looks of things, even Blake couldn't help but smile at the younger girl's apparent enthusiasm.

Most everyone were still around, though Weiss had left with Winter, glad to be able to spend some time with her sister. Qrow had, as promised, wandered off, and Ruby quickly confirmed that it was probably likely that the man had gone to a bar in Vale.

Yang had agreed with her sister's theory, so Jaune had taken it as true, though considering he hadn't doubted it to begin with, he didn't really know why he needed, or wanted, a second opinion.

At the moment, it appeared the older man tolerated his existence, which was at least better than he had when the first met.

That glance the first time, though. He hadn't been glared at like that since a long time ago now, and at the same time, after an apparent talk with Ozpin, Qrow hadn't given him that look again.

He'd given him a different look. One that made Jaune feel like the two needed to talk again. Not that Jaune wanted to. Something else was giving him that idea.

"Jaune?"

Jaune whipped around, noticing Pyrrha and Ruby looking at him, concern on their faces. "Sorry, zoned out for a sec. What's up?"

"Ruby was just mentioning the firing range you made, and I asked why there was a massive clump of ore in the way," Pyrrha repeated.

Jaune's eyes widened ever-so-slightly. "Ore? That's what that stuff is?"

Pyrrha nodded, walking over to it. "As far as I can tell. My semblance is picking it up, faintly, but I can feel it."

Jaune made a noise of sudden realization. "I couldn't touch it with _Terrakinesis_ , and I didn't know why."

Pyrrha placed her hand against it, a black glow spreading over it. Her face grew strained, and she released her control a moment later. "It's too much for me, too little actual refined metal for me to feasibly do anything to."

Jaune stepped up next to his partner, placing his own hand against it. "I mean, there's really only one thing left for me to try at the moment. Let me try push Mana into it."

Jaune really only knew one method of creating skills, and that was usually just manipulating Mana in one way or another to reach a goal. He wasn't really expecting it to work with this though, but he figured he'd give it a shot.

Sudden control filtered through his mind, and a notification appeared.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Ferrokinesis (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of manipulating metal around you, at the cost of 8 MP/s._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

"Oh, that actually worked," Jaune remarked in surprise. "I really wasn't expecting that to work, and I don't really know why."

"Jaune, harvest it! If you mould it into small enough chunks and stick it in your inventory, we can make metal out of it!" Ruby quickly exclaimed, and Jaune nodded, drawing it out and realizing that he couldn't make it bigger or smaller like he could with stone using _Terrakinesis_.

"Man, this feels weird. It's nothing like _Terrakinesis_."

Instead he used his control to pull a node and then have it cut itself off, dropping into his awaiting hand, where he stored it in his inventory.

The actual ball of ore seemed to be reducing in total size as he thinned it out, so it was less like he was pulling from a single point and more like he was drawing the mass from the entire thing itself, and Jaune found that quite strange. It almost felt like it wasn't quite solid, and yet at the same time that it was.

"Woah…" Ruby breathed out, watching in stunned silence. Pyrrha was doing the same, staring intently.

"I can feel what you're doing, Jaune…" Pyrrha uttered. "It feels so… strange."

Her senses were fluctuating as the metal obeyed physics in a way Pyrrha had never felt. Her magnetic sense helped her with all sorts of things as a kind of passive ability, such as her capability to always know where magnetic north was in relation to her own position, but now it was going haywire. It was dizzying.

"It's Iron Ore," Jaune mentioned, placing another chunk in his inventory. "I think because I went around it with _Terrakinesis_ I drew out all the impurities, so it's pure ore."

Ruby nodded. "Saves a lot of time and effort trying to purify it for the forge, at least."

Jaune kept going, slowly picking up speed as he became more and more used to the feeling.

Then, as suddenly as he'd started, he finished, the final chunk of ore thudding into his hand, and quickly vanishing into his inventory.

"Uhh, Jaune?"

Another strange thing, the consistency was starting to become almost annoying. "Oh."

Glistening and shining with a silvery light was a small outcropping of Dust inside the hole the ore had been in.

A quick _Observe_ answered the unasked question.

 **[Metal Dust Deposit]**

 **[Grade III]**

 **[** _Metal Dust is a dark grey color, and very sharp. With fusion being difficult at best, it is most commonly found inside rich ore deposits._ **]**

There were a few things that stood out to Jaune from that. ' _Fusion?'_

He tabled that for future consideration. A question to ask Weiss.

"It's a Metal Dust deposit," Jaune said, sliding into the crater to get a closer look.

He wrapped one hand around one of the few jutting out crystals, and wrenched it free, startled when it came out much easier than he'd been expecting.

It also sliced open his hand, which almost instantly regenerated without Jaune even really noticing the pain.

He did notice the blood, though, so he placed it in his inventory and then coated his hand in Aura as he grabbed the next crystal.

This time it didn't slice through his hand, and he quickly dismantled the outcropping, seven more Grade III Metal Dust Crystals adding to the first in his inventory.

And, finally, he placed his hand against the ground and used _Terrakinesis_ to pull it upwards, reshaping the ground to be flat, effectively filling in the small crater and finally leaving the firing range how he'd wanted it to be in the first place.

"Well, that was something. Dinner?"

* * *

With all the heavy lifting Jaune had done over the past few days, he'd actually earned a point in Strength.

Whether that meant he hadn't done all that much work or he'd done far too much work he didn't really know, but he wasn't one to turn down free stuff.

Speaking of work he'd done, the Arcave was now all wired and plumbed, hooked into Beacon's plumbing system which was, in turn, connected to Vale. It was strangely convenient how close the pipes were to the Arcave, now that Jaune thought about it, but it wasn't something important enough to dedicate too much thought to.

Vale Joint Weapons Manufacturing had delivered the equipment he'd ordered to Beacon, and Jaune had been quick to install all of it, and he'd just finished sticking the final light-bulb in the first floor.

He'd decided on a more typical kind of lighting for the first floor, and a style of fluorescent tubing for the workshop.

All in all, long story short, Jaune considered the Arcave at least ninety-percent complete.

He could work on furniture and doors later, because he'd mentioned one of his newest acquisitions to Ruby, and apparently mentioning the word 'pack' around her was a dangerous thing to mention.

"C'mon c'mon c'mon! Show me!"

Her excitement was palpable, so much so that Jaune swore he had to push aside some if it to actually see the red-cloaked girl.

He did as he was ordered, though, reaching into his inventory and taking out the object he was yet to inspect, or even see in its physical form.

It was a box, made of some kind of plastic-metal hybrid, securely sealed with a thin wrap of transparent plastic, a border of deep blue and pale grey along the edges.

Atop the lid it bore a single symbol, an eight-pointed star of blue crystal.

"Woah, that's a Frostbite Arms PACK!" Ruby exclaimed, staring at the box in his hands.

Jaune set it down on a workbench. "You keep saying pack. That doesn't mean what I think it does, does it?"

"Premade Armament Construction Kit," Ruby explained. "They're basically a box of parts for a weapon, and instructions. They're usually for civilians or collectors."

Jaune nodded in understanding, before turning to the box, quickly _Observing_ it.

 **[Tranquility]**

 **[** _A pump-action shotgun with an integrated silencer, Tranquility holds seven shells in the tube, with an eighth in the chamber._ **]**

Jaune read the description out aloud, Ruby hanging onto every word. "An integrated silencer? That's so cool! Those are like super-rare!"

"So, you said you'd help teach me. Wanna get started?"

Ruby was already halfway through opening the box when he reached the end of his sentence.

* * *

It had taken a few hours, and Jaune had noticed that his _Crafting_ level had increased a few times, up to 4, all thanks to the 1000 XP he'd received for finishing it, but it was, as he'd said, finally finished.

Silver-grey metal that seemed to turn dark-blue at certain angles and dark grey rubber on the stock, grip and foregrip, Tranquility was beautiful and yet seemingly rugged at the same time, two visuals directly competing and yet, at the same time, working together flawlessly.

Only problem was, Jaune didn't have any ammo for it.

Ruby had left when they'd finished, her sister and her uncle sending her a message for the family to meet.

Jaune folded Tranquility up, folding the stock under the receiver and watching as the rest of the circuit took action, barrel retracting.

He decided against placing it on his belt, as he didn't actually have anything on his belt to hook it onto, instead dropping it into his inventory.

He took the stairs two at a time up to the first floor, switching the lights off as he did so. Power conservation would save him thousands of Lien in the long run, or so his mother had drilled into his head. To be fair, there were eight of them at home when she'd said that, and considering that there were eight of them now, seven friends instead of seven sisters, he had to imagine that his mother was right.

Though, come to think of it, he was supplying his own power and not paying Vale for it, so it was somewhat cheaper.

It didn't matter all that much, to be fair, but every little bit helped.

Jaune switched off the lights for the first floor, shutting the 'door', which was actually him just sealing the doorway with a quick burst of _Terrakinesis_.

He, once again, began taking the steps two at a time, quickly climbing the cliff.

It was late afternoon again, class was finished, and Jaune had something planned.

He reached the top of the cliff with ease, stepping off the steps and continuing his path towards the dorms.

Weiss was probably busy, Blake was probably in the library, and Pyrrha was probably training.

Jaune knew these things.

So, Jaune pulled out his scroll as he walked.

He quickly sent a message out on the team chat, knowing the three would see it.

'Vytal Tournament is in four days. Four days of training. One hour, meet in clearing. Come armed, and ready for combat.'

And while he waited for them to gather their gear, he would have time to pick up some ammo from Vale.

And prepare an ambush.

* * *

 **Well, we draw ever closer to the Vytal Tournament, and Jaune's pulling out all the stops to make sure he and his team are prepared for the competition. We get to see Tranquility in action next chapter most likely, and hopefully the chapter quality will be up to a better standard. Been a tad bit distracted this week.**

 **Anyways, onto reviews!**

 **Mark: Uh... I'm going to be honest, I don't quite know what you mean when you say 'Canon Grimm with Semblances', because that hasn't happened? I don't think, at least? Did I miss Volume 7 or something? Besides, it was a comparison, not so much a definitive explanation.**

 **Fireshared: As of right now, Jaune's a little across the board when it comes to a specific style, which is quite useful as he's about to compete in the Vytal Tournament. However, I imagine that may fluctuate over time, depending on the situations he's presented with.**

 **typhonyx: It's always great fun to try and wrangle a fight into a way that makes it read properly and doesn't feel like a pub-stomp. It does help when I pick a level for the bad guy and check the HP calculator I have for Grimm and kind of just stare as it prints the number like ten times as high as I'd expected it to be. And, now that you mention it, Jaune 'Shadow of the Colossus'-ing was actually completely accidental. I think my mind is just a sponge at this point, and I just regurgitate things I saw or read in the past with absolutely no self-awareness of myself doing so.**

 **lordrednight: That's actually pretty spot-on for what I was going for, with the floating crystals. I'm glad you liked it!**

 **splithaven: Now that you mention it, I feel like Velvet and the rest of CFVY haven't had nearly enough (or any) screentime in Systema. I'd best see about changing that at some point. Though Velvet's VA has a pretty soft accent, trust me on that.**

 **armentho: I'm gonna be honest, I have no method of figuring out specific parts and damage dealt to HP from outside sources. I could establish that, of course, but I really kind of don't want to? That's a whole few days of working away at the spreadsheet at least. You are right, though, he is pretty tough to kill now. At least, from weak enemies. As for Jaune starting a business, it's a good idea, but he can just make money from killing Grimm, so he doesn't really need to? Like, I get the idea, and from a logical standpoint it would be a great idea, but from an entertainment and plot standpoint it'd kind of get really boring really fast. A Loki-esq Grimm is a cool idea too, though I doubt I'll do that sort of thing. That's more of a separate fic idea than something for Systema, and I think that's a common theme with a lot of ideas I've had for this sort of thing. There are only so many things I can add that won't break the flow of the story, and this chapter is a good example of that. I've already spent quite a bit of time on the Arcave, and it's getting a little stale, so I'm trying to break it up, and skip parts that just aren't interesting to read. A bunch of your other ideas are great, though, don't get me wrong. A Mana Flamethrower-esq skill would be incredibly useful, and so would massive amounts of grenade spam, so I get where you're coming from. And, finally, I will be delving deep into the whole somewhat-canon-ignored racism that was supposedly present, but seeing as Vale is supposedly 'Faunus-friendly', I doubt it will be extreme enough from AWBNRRYN's perspective to receive direct reaction. That said, I will make it a point at some point.**

 **dirtrevor: Close, but don't you worry. You may see Volcanus sooner or later.**

 **Guest: You're right, I should do that. It's just easy to forget, so I've made a little reminder in the form of a sticky-note on my monitor that says as much.**

 **razmire: Jaune has two charts he knows about to select from now, Grimm Souls and Elementals. I doubt there will be more choices, but if an idea sticks in my head long enough that I develop it, we may see a third.**

 **jedimasterb10: Think of Mana Tether less as a JC3/4 Grapple/Tether and more as a blob of Mana with a bunch of tentacles. Like a really angry octopus, or something from Ninjas Of Love. Though, a grappling hook isn't a bad idea. I've watched him, yeah, and whilst I don't tend to watch many youtube videos anymore, seeing as a lot of my free-time is taken up by this, I have been playing Siege since it came out. So, I can safely say that, as a Thermite main, I'm familiar with the halloween skins. Those goggles, man, every time I get MVP it stares into my very soul and demands a level of fear that I can't quite comprehend.**

 **InsertNameHere: Lmao?**

 **voidvoidvoid: Well, see you I guess? Good luck finding a fic that isn't either harem or have a gay pairing. Cause, uh, that might take some time.**

 **Reesesracer: Hope it lived up to the small amount of hype I accidentally built up. (I feel like I've said that before.)**

 **SnappingFlower: Now concepts are an interesting, uh... concept... but I don't really think I'll be doing them. Especially considering we've got Space and Energy Dust already. Wink wink. Tease. Mild to major spoilers for possible future summons.**

 **And that about does it for my inherently stupid ramblings for this week! I have a twitter fat_flying and a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale if anyone feels like stopping by.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	45. Guitar Lessons

**What's this? An early-morning chapter? That might be a first. Enjoy!**

* * *

Three thousand Lien down, Jaune now possessed one hundred 12 gauge buckshot shotgun shells.

In and out of Vale in less than fifty minutes, Jaune had to consider that a new personal record.

He was back in the clearing now, inventory open, the folded form of Tranquility in hand.

Jaune flicked it quickly, unfolding the shotgun and grabbing the slide, racking it back.

He'd only ever seen people use these sorts of weapons in Spruce Willis movies, but it was enough to get started.

The first thing he did was check the safety, followed by him loading the first shell into the side.

It made one of the most satisfying sounds Jaune had ever heard as he racked it forward, and he began loading the seven remaining shells into the tube through the slot beneath.

He shouldered the stock, one hand on the grip and the other on the slide, and he aimed at a nearby tree, sighting down the irons atop the weapon.

His finger rested against the trigger, and he exhaled, squeezing down.

Tranquility kicked in his hands, a quiet thump echoing throughout the clearing as the tree splintered with a crack.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Weapon Proficiency: Firearms (Passive):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of wielding all firearms without difficulty! The higher the level of this skill, the more skilled you are with all firearms, and the more damage you are capable of dealing._ _ **Level 1; XP 1/12.**_ **]**

 **[You've gained a new title!]**

 **[Armsmaster Equipped:** _+25% Weapon Swap Speed, +5% Weapon Effectiveness._ _ **(2/5 Primary Weapons Owned.)**_ **]**

Jaune pumped the shotgun and loaded another shell, before quickly folding Tranquility up, the new attachment plate he'd purchased magnetizing the folded weapon to the side of his belt, under his coat.

The size of the shotgun when it was folded meant that it was relatively concealed, but still within easy reach to be drawn when needed. It made Jaune wonder why he hadn't gotten a ranged weapon before today.

The new title was unexpected. He didn't quite know what an increased weapon swap speed would feel like, but it was still quite useful.

That was, if he equipped it. That was the whole thing with titles that he was still yet to figure out.

Speaking of which…

He'd made the mistake of not equipping his Designer title when he'd made Tranquility. That was a serious mistake, too.

Next time, he wouldn't make that error.

Now, Jaune had to prepare a training exercise for his team.

"Cadejo, Alcmena, Callisto, Electrus," Jaune said aloud, the four summons appearing as he spoke their names, the Bound Souls forming from his shadow, the Elemental instead seemingly shuddering to life, crystals forming from the very air, sparking quietly.

"We'll be training," Jaune began to explain. "Nothing lethal, stop when their Aura is at fifteen percent or lower."

His summons all acknowledged the order, and once they had, they began to blend with the scenery, pushing back into the Emerald Forest. Even Electrus managed to conceal himself, crystals dimming at will, sparks becoming almost silent.

Jaune had a brilliant idea that was entirely for dramatic effect, and not at all useful, but he really, really wanted to do it.

He raised a stone dais in the center of the clearing and brought out his scroll.

'Attack me.' Jaune typed, sending it.

It was somewhat cryptic, but Jaune was having fun with the whole dramatic tension thing.

Jaune sat atop the dais, and reached into his inventory with a smile.

* * *

"Any idea what Jaune wants now?"

Pyrrha looked over her shoulder to see Blake approaching. "His message said training, but then the second one came through. I think he just wants us to attack him as a part of training."

"Do you think we should play along, or should we try and figure out what's happening beforehand?" Blake asked, stopping next to her teammate. "If we play on his terms, we might lose."

Pyrrha nodded. "True. Then again, it is Jaune we're talking about. I'm sure he has a trick or six up his sleeve."

"Hopefully the dunce understands that he needs to be practicing his 'public' semblance. Otherwise there isn't all that much of a point."

Weiss had arrived, a somewhat frustrated expression on her face. "Besides, I've already been training today. If he expects that what he is planning is better than what I've been doing, he may be in for a shock."

Pyrrha hummed in noncommittal agreement, but Blake seemed distracted.

"Blake? Is something wrong?" Pyrrha asked, noticing her black-haired teammate peering over the edge of the cliff.

"I can hear… music?"

Quickly, the three began descending the stairs, and the clearing became more and more in view.

And, as the clearing became, well, clearer, so too did the blond-haired teen sat upon the stone dais in the middle, strumming a song on an acoustic guitar.

It wasn't so much of a song as it was a series of chords, but it was strangely soothing.

Pyrrha remembered the second scroll message, and she drew Milo and Akouo, stepping onto the grass.

Blake and Weiss followed suit, drawing their blades, slowly spreading out.

Jaune didn't look up at them, instead continuing to play.

The three shared a glance between themselves.

Well, Jaune had said to attack.

Blake lunged forwards, blade as sharp as ever, slashing at Jaune.

For a single moment the air was filled with the sound of a single chord strummed louder than the rest.

Cadejo leapt from the undergrowth, fangs meeting blade as the wolf forced Blake backwards.

Pyrrha and Weiss pushed forwards, and Jaune finally looked up.

Callisto lumbered forth from behind Jaune as the teen leaped backwards, over the top of the bear, and Weiss quickly created a glyph beneath her and Pyrrha, launching the two over Callisto as the bear swung.

Alcmena hit Weiss midair, knocking the white-haired girl off course, but Pyrrha was unswayed from her goal.

Jaune's shield met Pyrrha's xiphos, and the two engaged, Jaune just barely keeping up with his shield.

It was a stalemate, as of that moment, and Pyrrha decided against continuing it against someone who she knew had far more Aura, instead disengaging and throwing Akouo, the dipylon shield spinning through the air as Jaune effectively pushed it aside, quickly blocking the follow-up rifle rounds that left imperceptible divots in his shield.

Pyrrha's semblance took control of her shield, pulling it back to her as she continued her ranged onslaught, and Jaune stayed behind his shield, presenting a smaller target.

Callisto interrupted her barrage with a heavy swing that pushed the champion backwards as it hit against her shield, heels digging into the dirt.

Then Jaune was on her, sword slicing an arc that met her xiphos with the resounding sound of metal on metal and the typical sparks that accompanied such an act.

Pyrrha would win in a one-on-one fight against him, that much was painfully obvious. It would be tough, and he wouldn't go down without a fight, but it would still result in a loss at his current capabilities.

Which was why Jaune refused to fight fair.

Callisto raised both paws and Jaune grabbed Pyrrha by the shield, his strength proving to be more than enough to hold the champion in place as the paws came down, and Pyrrha was forced to abandon Akouo or be crushed, something she did not seem all that bothered by.

The moment the shield glowed black as she used her semblance to attempt to pull it back Jaune shook his head, handing it to one of Cadejo's clones that he'd ordered to approach, the others still keeping Blake and now Weiss busy.

Pyrrha frowned as the wolf-clone bounded off into the forest, shield securely in its jaws, and she gave up trying to pull it back to her, instead resolving herself to use her free hand with her semblance.

It meant that Jaune was going to have to be extra careful with Crocea Mors, but it was a significant advantage.

Pyrrha rushed him, flipping over his counter-swing and stabbing at his shoulder, where he brought his shield up to block, only to have it adjusted against his grip to miss, the tip of Milo meeting his shoulder blade and sending him stumbling forwards, Aura chipped somewhat.

Jaune shrugged as Pyrrha stared him down, and he shifted his shield's form, stowing it on his belt, giving his shoulder a roll to shake away the remaining feeling of the blow.

She would still be able to bend and adjust his blows from Crocea Mors, and also retain a minor amount of control of the sheath on his hip, but it was a margin better than having to deal with his shield not doing what he needed it to.

"I have to admit, Pyrrha, you're terrifying to face in battle," Jaune remarked, only to have his eyes widen somewhat as a panting Blake and Weiss stepped up next to her.

A quick glance over to Cadejo had Jaune notice that the wolf had backed down, his various clones laying on the ground, tired out. It appeared the summon had ceased combat when he'd reached a certain level of exhaustion, though as to what that level was Jaune didn't know. It was more of an instinctual understanding rather than a numerical display.

Jaune stretched his free arm out, and Alcmena soared down, landing on it with ease as Callisto lumbered up.

Down to three summons, though he was yet to reveal Electrus for fear that the Elemental would be unable to control the output of _Stormbolt_ and he might accidentally vaporize one of his teammates. Not something he wanted to do.

Though Electrus could do other things, he supposed. He wasn't half-bad in a scrap through sheer blunt force trauma, and could discharge electricity to stun and damage those nearby, so he was an excellent trick that Jaune would keep up his sleeve for the time being.

"I'm not sure if I should be insulted or not," Pyrrha replied, a small smile gracing her face. "I'll go with not for now."

Jaune leveled Crocea Mors at the three, blade unwavering. Callisto reared up on her hind legs, and Alcmena spread her wings, bronze tips shining despite the cloudy sky.

A moment of silence spread across the clearing before Blake and Pyrrha shot forwards, propelled by a glowing white glyph beneath their legs, courtesy of Weiss.

Jaune deflected Blake's initial strike with Crocea Mors and Alcmena took off, scattering sharpened feathers at Pyrrha, causing the redhead to have to abandon her attack to deflect the projectiles, and Jaune slashed, only to have his blade caught by Blake's secondary swing with her cleaver-sheath.

In retaliation, Jaune grabbed Blake by the arm and spun, throwing her at Callisto, who swung and broke Blake into fading nothingness as the black-haired Faunus dodged, but Jaune was already focusing on blocking Pyrrha's strike, her xiphos clanging against Crocea Mors once more.

Weiss was already charging in, Myrtenaster's tip pointed at him, and he side-stepped into Blake's ribbon, watching as it tied itself around his sword-arm.

Jaune decided to pull one of many tricks, calling Electrus out of the forest. The lumbering crystalline structure of the Elemental closed the distance with deceptive speed and smashed his arm against an unexpecting Weiss, and even Jaune winced as her Aura dropped below ten percent from the hit, sending her rolling in the dust.

Pyrrha slashed at his unprotected side even as it happened, and he had no choice but to take the hit, watching as his AP took a significant dip, but using the attack as an opportunity to wrap his arm around her blade and hold it securely against his side, twisting his grip on Crocea Mors and pulling it through, severing the ribbon-cable that held his arm, Blake stumbling forwards as the tension vanished, right into Callisto's awaiting arms, where the bear wrapped Blake tightly in what could only be called a bearhug.

Pyrrha struggled against his grip, putting one foot against his leg and pulling hard, but with his increased Strength and his now-free arm, he quickly attempted a downwards stab at her.

Pyrrha was fast enough to push the blade with her semblance, hard enough that it completely dislodged Crocea Mors from his grip, sending it spinning off, where it thudded into the trunk of a tree, blade embedded at least half a foot into the wood.

They paid it no mind, however, the two wrestling for control over Milo, before Jaune released his grip on her free arm, reaching behind his coat.

Pyrrha managed to shove him free when he released her, blade now back in her hand, only to find herself staring down the barrel of Tranquility.

He pulled the trigger, and the burst of buckshot that emerged from the end of the barrel was quick to impact against Pyrrha's Aura, his free hand coming up to rack the slide.

He wasn't as fast as he'd wished he could be, though, and Pyrrha took advantage of that, pushing the shotgun barrel aside as he wisely decided against pulling the trigger a second time, instead ducking under her slash and then rolling forwards to build some distance.

Alcmena kept Pyrrha pinned as he did so, preventing her from capitulating on his retreat with another burst of razor-sharp feathers.

He fired Tranquility again, and Pyrrha waved her hand as he pulled the trigger.

He'd expected his aim to fly off target a moment too late, and he found himself startled as the buckshot seemed to just drop out of the air, without momentum.

"Did you just deflect that?!" Jaune asked aloud, shocked.

Pyrrha seemed as shocked as he did. "That was a coincidence, I think…"

Jaune hoped so, for his sake, racking the slide once more.

Pyrrha regained her sense, shifting Milo from xiphos to rifle and opening fire on the defenseless Jaune, who decided that the match had gone on long enough.

He sprinted at the girl, her surprise evident on her face as the rounds splintered on his Aura, and soon he had breached her defense, rifle half-shifted to xiphos, the barrel of Tranquility leveled at her chest.

"Bang," Jaune said, not bothering to fire. At this distance, considering how much Aura Pyrrha had left, it would do actual damage to the fighter.

Pyrrha seemed to accept the sentiment as what it was, a smile on her face. "It has been some time since I've been so summarily beaten. Your Aura was barely touched."

Jaune held out a hand, which the girl gratefully took. "That's only 'cause I've got so much of it. Seriously. It's ridiculous now."

"Lucky you…" Weiss groaned from somewhere to their left, the clump of somewhat-dirty white moaning in pain. "I can only wish that was my problem."

"Callisto, please let go…" Blake let out, her voice muffled by the furry arm that covered half of her torso and face.

Callisto did so, releasing Blake, before summarily dropping onto her hindquarters, forelegs coming to rest on her hind-legs.

Blake spat out a mouthful of fur before immediately turning pink, glaring at Jaune. "If you, Yang, or anyone else makes a hairball joke in the next six months I will personally gut you and hang you from Ozpin's office."

Jaune paled. "Nope. Mouth is shut. Not making any jokes. Thought never crossed my mind."

That was, in fact, a complete lie, but it seemed to make Blake feel somewhat better. _Deceitful Speech_ leveled up, too, so it worked out in the end.

"That was a good fight, Jaune. You are rather capable with just your blade and your summons, though I must ask about the shotgun," Pyrrha said, once she'd helped Weiss to her feet.

Jaune gave Tranquility a spin in his hand, marvelling at the feel. "This is Tranquility. It was a PACK that I got from the Malignant Beowolf. Ruby helped me make it a couple hours ago."

He quickly loaded two more shells into it, before folding it up and stowing it on his belt.

"So, we've got three more days after today until the start of the Vytal Tournament. Our application is in, thanks Weiss, so I think we should take the next few afternoons to work on a few things, whatever we think we need to improve. Sound like a plan?"

It appeared that the rest of AWBN were in agreement. It was going to be a productive three days.

"Oh, Jaune, next time you try and be all dramatic, at least learn a real song to play on guitar."

Jaune shrugged at Weiss's statement. "I'll have you know I got the _Instrumentation_ skill from that, and it's already at level 33."

Weiss rolled her eyes. "I stand by my point."

* * *

"Welcome to the Vytal Festival Tournament!"

Port's booming voice was a perfect fit for commentator, Jaune had to admit.

As long as he didn't go on a tangent and tell another of his tales, like that time with the Ursa, the six-fingered man and the bucket of lukewarm porridge.

Jaune shuddered. He didn't know why these things remained in his memory. Perhaps it was a curse of his increased INT.

"We're broadcasting live from the Amity Colosseum here today, and what a beautiful day it is, yes! It reminds me of a time a few years ago, where-"

Jaune had never been more thankful to hear Doctor Oobleck's voice. "Yes, quite, Peter! We'll be getting into our first match very soon, but first, we have to pick our competitors!"

Port, suitably chastised, regained control. "Let's spin the wheel, and see who we'll end up with!"

The crowds, of which were plentiful, all looked up to see the holographic projections as the wheel spun.

"Team NDGO, of Vacuo's Shade Academy!" Port announced.

"Versus Team RRYN, of our own Beacon Academy!" Oobleck finished.

"Comprised of the leader Nebula Violette, Dew Gayl, Gwen Darcy and Octavia Ember, Team NDGO have been a top-team within Shade! Let's see if it can stand up to the might of…" Port spoke aloud, and Oobleck quickly continued.

"Team RRYN, the up-and-coming first-year team led by Ruby Rose, with Lie Ren, Yang Xiao Long and Nora Valkyrie! RRYN are a strong contender this year!"

"The match will begin in only five minutes! Stay tuned, folks!"

Jaune turned to his friends. "Looks like you're up, RRYN. Good thing, too. Hate to go up against you guys too early."

Ruby rolled her eyes as she placed the folded form of Crescent Rose on her back. "Pfft. You just have to have faith, Jaune! We'll see each other in the final match, if you make it that far."

Yang nudged her sister. "I mean, out of all of us I think AWBN have the advantage. They're pretty much Beacon's powerhouse."

Pyrrha shook her head at that. "I doubt that. I'd say we're equal. You, Nora and Jaune are the heavy hitters, whereas the rest of us are more agile fighters. I will be interested to see what happens in the final match, though, if we all do make it."

"I can't wait to break some legs!" Nora exclaimed, hefting Magnhild over her head. "Why can't it start already!?"

"We don't know anything about NDGO," Weiss said from her spot by a locker. "You'd best be on your guard."

"Well, we can't be on our guard if you guys don't let us leave! C'mon, forward march!" Ruby cried out, pointing towards the door.

Soon, the eight of them had fled the locker room, splitting at the intersection in the hallway, AWBN heading for the spectator stands and RRYN heading for the entrance to the field.

Ruby grabbed Jaune's arm before he could turn, and held him back until she knew Yang was out of earshot. "Wish me luck?"

Jaune, internally giddy, leaned over and gave Ruby a chaste kiss. "Good luck. Not like you need it."

Ruby, still unused to the kind of affection she was receiving, blushed hard, a dopey smile on her face. "See you soon."

And with that, she caught up to her team in a rush of rose petals.

* * *

Standing on the field was a very different experience that watching a fight from the stands.

Partly because that meant that you weren't actually taking part in the fight, so that was a whole other thing, but also because when you were a part of the audience, you didn't have quite literally thousands of people staring at you.

Sure, it was just like combat class, but combat class wasn't broadcast across all the kingdoms.

"Don't worry, Rubes. We've got this."

Her sister's words were comforting, but it didn't subtract from the absolute noise that was the audience, roaring cheers from all sides for the two teams that were about to face each other down.

"Heard a lot about you, RRYN. Looking forward to this fight."

The voice was from the leader of NDGO, a girl by the name of Nebula Violette, and from what Ruby could tell she appeared genuine. That was good.

Ruby mustered her courage, and stood up straight. "We're looking forward to it too. Good luck!"

Nebula shared a glance about her team. "You as well."

"And here we go! The first match of the 40th Vytal Tournament! Let's see what terrain our teams will be fighting on!"

Port's voice was as booming as ever, and carried across the audience with ease, mostly due to the volume all the speakers were adjusted to.

The two teams watched as the holographic projections spun, ground sliding back as the new field emerged.

Behind NDGO Ruby watched as one of the various terrains rose from where it was concealed, grey stone and warm water in equal amounts.

A quick glance behind her revealed a far more familiar terrain, green trees and grass blowing in the wind.

"Oh-ho-ho! It appears that Team RRYN will have the home-field advantage with this environment, with the Forest and the Geyser Fields!" Port continued. "What will NDGO do without an environment they've trained on?"

"I can't wait to find out, Peter. So, let us begin! Whenever the horn is sounded, the match shall begin!" Oobleck announced.

Ruby shared one final glance with her team, weapons at the ready.

The horn sounded.

* * *

Ruby didn't know what she'd expected.

Whatever she had expected it certainly wasn't this.

NDGO were pushovers. Two of them were already down.

Yang had taken out the spear-wielder with such blistering ferocity that the entirety of NDGO had almost seemed stunned, and that was before anyone else had gotten an attack off.

Ruby chalked that up to her training with Pyrrha. If anyone was going to be an expert at dealing with polearms it was going to be Yang.

Three punches, though? Her Aura had dipped beneath the regulated fifteen percent after three whole punches.

The one with the knives proved to be just as weak, and Ren had effectively ran her out of ammunition with ease, flowing like water, only to turn out to be serving as a distraction for Nora to deliver a punishing blow that knocked her clean out of the arena.

Ruby was using the trees as sniping positions, balanced carefully in the branches, occasionally firing a shot whenever someone was left out of position.

The leader of the team had retreated into the cover of the rocks in the Geyser Fields, alongside the one with the kris, the wavy dagger that sent waves of fire that reminded Ruby of Jaune's _Mana Slashes_.

None of RRYN had taken a hit yet, aside from Yang deliberately tanking that wave of fire in order to boost her semblance somewhat.

A crossbow bolt nearly found its way into her face, and Ruby realized that despite the significant advantage her team possessed, NDGO weren't going to back down without a fight.

She repositioned quickly, using the recoil of Crescent Rose to launch her to a different tree, firing a snapshot off while she was in the air, before landing with practiced ease.

The shot hadn't hit, but it had driven the two of them down behind the rock further, cutting off any line of sight they may have had on her, so her position was somewhat concealed again.

She wished that the trees were ones from the Forever Fall, because red didn't really blend in all that well with the regular green of these trees, but she was just being picky. It wasn't like Grimm really cared about camouflage anyway.

Were Grimm colorblind? That was an interesting question. Maybe she'd ask her uncle after the fight.

Oh, right. Fighting. She should probably get back to it.

"Nora, try and drive them out of cover! Ren, take the left, keep them out of cover! Yang, when you see an opening, get close!" Ruby shouted, her voice thankfully carrying across the arena.

Yes, it meant that the enemy team heard her orders, but until she managed to steal- er, borrow some Lien from Jaune to buy some scroll-link communicators, this would have to do.

He had enough Lien, it was fine. They were dating, and Yang had always said that you treat each other in a relationship!

Granted, he'd basically gotten her a contract with the VJWM, and a whole expansive workshop, but still, the point remained.

The sound of one of Nora's grenades exploding snapped her attention back to the battlefield.

Nebula and Gwen had broken from the shattered, smoking remains of their cover, only to have the former picked off by one of her bullets, and Gwen suddenly found herself spinning through the air, unable to block the two-pronged attack that had a hammer and a fist hit her at the same time.

Even Ruby winced at that. She was going to have bruises for a day at least.

Ruby dropped from the tree, landing with deceptive ease, Aura flaring around her feet as she hit the dirt.

"And with that we conclude the first match of the 40th Vytal Tournament, with a victory from Beacon's Team RRYN! Congratulations!" Oobleck exclaimed.

Ruby shared a cheer with the rest of her team.

Victory. One step closer to the final match.

One step closer to her fight with her boyfriend and his team.

Or so she hoped.

"Get your drinks, get your snacks, and be back in ten minutes, but before you do, we'll announce our next match!" Port announced.

As RRYN left the arena, they watched the wheel spin, selecting the two teams that would be next to fight.

"Team COPR, of Atlas Academy, led by Ciel Soleil, with Olive Masato, Penny Polendina and Rayle Cabernet, one of many outstanding first-year teams from Atlas Academy this year!" Oobleck spoke.

"Versus Team SALT, from Shade Academy, led by Salis Mundus, with Alka Line, Chlora Lake and Tanner Lake, a spectacular team of second year students!" Port let loose a laugh. "We'll see you soon, folks!"

* * *

Ruby was excited to see Penny fight, she'd made quick friends with the girl when they'd met all that time ago, when they'd been searching for Blake.

"Gotta say, I didn't expect Penny to be a Huntress-in-training," Jaune muttered, half to himself.

"Wait, you know Penny?" Ruby asked, placing herself in the empty seat next to her fellow leader.

"Uh, not really? I just tripped over her once, and she helped me out when I was looking for Blake."

Ruby nodded. "Same. She's got that kind of magnetic personality, I guess."

Inwardly, Ruby hid a snigger, her inside joke flying over Jaune's head.

"Something like that, I guess. I didn't realize you knew her."

Ruby slumped in her seat. "I wanted to know her better, but she has a really strict home-life, so she doesn't get to go out much. We've only talked a few times, but you know how it is."

"Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet," Jaune said with a laugh. "Feels like it's been years."

Ruby leaned her head against Jaune's shoulder, allowing herself to relax. "Worried about your match?"

Jaune shook his head. "Nah. Considering how easy your match was, I don't know if I really have to worry. Pyrrha took all of CRDL down on her own, so if we get matched against them, I gotta say I look forward to it. There can't be all that many people that can stand up to her, and we've got Blake and Weiss to back her up."

Ruby let her hand smack against Jaune's leg. "You're selling yourself short again."

Jaune laughed. "Nah, I just figure if I get involved the audience might be a little spooked by the whole 'summoning Grimm' thing."

"Then save it, hide it. Just go at them with Crocea Mors, and only summon if you need to. Easy."

Jaune had to agree. "I know, I know, I just… it's super selfish, but I kind of want to show off, you know? I spent so much of my life before the System being looked down on as weak, but now…"

Ruby shrugged. "I mean, that's kind of what the tournament is about, isn't it? Showing that we have super-strong fighters training for the sake of the kingdoms. The stronger you appear, the better the world's emotional state, the less Grimm incursions."

Jaune opened his mouth, found nothing to refute her point, and realized that the tournament was exactly that. "Oh. That makes a lot of sense, actually."

"You'll be fine. If I can stand in front of all those people, I'm sure you can too."

"Ruby, you spent almost all of the match hiding in the trees."

Ruby's pout only made him laugh.

* * *

 **And thus we've begun the Vytal Tournament. What could possibly go wrong?**

 **jedimasterb10: Yeah, that's what we'll call it. 'Anime', right. Glad to see a bit of Mozzie love here, too, as a fellow short, loud Aussie.**

 **AthanMortis: The other great thing about a bow and arrow is how silent it can be. Tranquility may have an integrated silencer, but even in sci-fi fantasy land it still makes noise. But, and this is a rather shapely but, there is a bow in the spreadsheet, so it may pop up at some point, depending on the random loot rolls. I actually had Tranquility roll at random from a list of about twenty, and that was after I limited the list.**

 **Ase Rine: You are absolutely correct, and yet at the same time I feel like I'd be infringing on the titles of a number of good fics on the site. And damn them all for writing such entertaining stuff, it makes me want to write those kinds of things.**

 **lordrednight: Well, I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it. I'm playing around with Qrow and Winter a little, to establish a dynamic that's really only been teased and hinted at in canon, and I kind of like the buddy-cop style I'm working with. Expect to see them somewhat more in the future.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: I feel like it would be better off simply as having them as new Grimm rather than expanding on the already admittedly long list of variants I've been messing with. I do have a few sort-of-variants planned, including an Arctic Beowolf sort of thing, but we won't see that for some time.**

 **armentho: I'm going to be honest, I'm not going to spend hours and hours agonizing over so many details. Lien is a little, let's say, flexible, and my pricing is usually plucked from thin air half the time, so if it is or isn't accurate, or obey the million different taxation laws that exist in the world, it really isn't going to bother me, because not only do I believe that to not be enjoyable to read, it most certainly isn't going to be enjoyable to write. Let's all be honest, LitRPGs as a whole, Gamer included, are quite a bit about instant gratification. I try to temper that, of course, and manage it as best I can without it overriding the story, but if I were to sacrifice the story for the sake of the technical side, it'd become pretty clear that it just isn't all that interesting to read someone else's spreadsheet put to paper. Sure, I'm more than happy to have attention drawn to Jaune as he makes waves in the world, but at this point, I don't think the kingdoms really care about a Hunter spending Lien on ammo and parts. When he starts doing things on a more cataclysmic scale, then we'll definitely start to see governments and organizations taking part in the story.**

 **Tsu no mumei: You actually went the opposite direction I went for the Metal Elemental, but that's a good thing. It gives me a chance to adjust them, modify what they may be capable of. I really like the war pick idea, too, because let's be honest, we never see enough sharp objects.**

 **18sprar1: Ooh, now that's a cool idea. If it ever comes up, thanks for the idea!**

 **drannakka: Those are definitely things that could happen within the realm of possibility.**

 **SnappingFlower: I'm right with you on the minor OCD thing, it takes a hell of a lot to resist giving Jaune full sets of things. In the case of costs, Soul Orb costs were completely arbitrary. I quite literally just picked ones that seemed good enough at the time, and they are, currently, subject to change, if I feel that they need it.**

 **Axccel: It was a random shape I picked, I swear! I didn't want a snowflake like the SDC but I still needed something that was reminiscent of ice!**

 **Spidersauce: I feel like that may just be a kind of 'translation-error', of a sort. Like I'm using the word block not as a literal description of the action being performed but more of a feeling to what happens, if that makes any sense. Or, and here me out, you can accept the bullshit I just spewed, and we can pretend I didn't make serious mistakes in not quite understanding the intricacies of sword-and-shield combat.**

 **Shadow of God: He he he. CMEN. I'm a mature adult, I swear. I guess you'll just have to wait and see what happens, and don't worry, I wasn't planning on dropping Systema. We're almost at the 1-year anniversary!**

 **estebran: I've been reading a good number of RoyalRoad-based stories lately, actually, and I may have a presence up on the site soonish-ish. I'm spending a little bit of time each week developing an original story, actually, so that's fun. As for immovable, well, let's just say there's a specific buff in the spreadsheet that you may enjoy by the name of Anchor.**

 **Brainarius: To be fair, I haven't stated that Jaune is the only other wizard. And, there's a lot more to that than I'm willing to speak about right now. I will say, however, that Ozpin's 'Magic' and Jaune's 'Magic' are different.**

 **That about does it for reviews this week, boy there are a lot of you now. Next week is the 1-year anniversary of Systema, and I'm so glad to have all of you with me. Nearly a full year with weekly chapters, man, I've gotta be like the eighth-most reliable RWBY writer on here. Probably. Don't quote me on that.**

 **I have a twitter fat_flying, and a Pa Treon if anyone wants to toss a poor broke Aussie some precious money, and I love you all.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	46. Noodle Rejection

**Sigh. I wrote out all the reviews and such and they got removed. Great.**

 **Sorry about this week's chapter being shorter than usual, but this week has been absolutely hectic. Between this being my final week of assignments and a mate and I buying a Vive, safe to say I've been busy.**

* * *

Penny was the standout fighter on Team COPR. That was clear as day. Her precise control with the floating swords she appeared to have tethered to the backpack she wore was incredible, and paired with what appeared to be a semblance that boosted her strength, she practically tore through Team SALT without much trouble, single-handedly.

Her team helped out where she needed, if she needed, but it appeared that it was a rare occurrence.

Ruby and Jaune watched in amazement as Penny looped a sword and its cable around the leg of one of SALT, and effectively threw him out of the arena, ending the match with another blade denting the Aura of the team's leader, driving it beneath the fifteen percent regulation amount.

"Huh," Jaune remarked, once the match had ended. "Penny's way stronger than I expected."

Ruby nodded. "She stopped a truck with her bare hands once. Granted, that's actually not that hard for someone like her or you to do, but I couldn't do that."

Jaune looked at her. "I don't know if I can stop a truck with my bare hands, Ruby."

Ruby recovered quickly. "I meant bare hands and semblance."

Jaune nodded, before adopting a pensive expression.

"You're thinking about whether or not you can stop a truck, aren't you," The redhead deadpanned, looking at the blond.

"If I used _Mana Shield_ over the top of my shield, and hit myself with _Power_ and _Enduring_ , I could probably stop it."

Ruby pinched the bridge of her nose, though she did allow herself a small smile. "Jaune, please don't go picking fights with trucks."

"What if they pick a fight with me?"

Another deadpan stare from Ruby shut him up, before she stood up. "I'm gonna go talk to Penny, and then see if RRYN wanna go get some food. If your match comes up I'll be here!"

Jaune gave her a wave. "Tell Penny I said hi!"

Ruby sped off, petals spinning in her wake.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen, our third matchup of the day is coming up! Let's see who it'll be!"

Jaune watched with mild interest as the wheel spun.

"Looks like it's Atlas Academy's Team FNKI, led by Flynt Coal, with Neon Katt, Murri Katt and Ilse Frost!" Oobleck announced.

"Versus Team DMND, also from Atlas Academy! Led by Ulysses Demos, with Antonio Morningstar, Yanos Nachten and Dominic Steele! This ought to be an interesting matchup!"

* * *

"Qrow."

"Mmph."

"Qrow!"

"Snoring."

"Damn you, Qrow."

"Z Z Z."

"Qrow, get up now, or so help me I will freeze you to that bar."

"Not the worst punishment I've ever heard."

"It will be when I pay the bartender not to serve you anything."

Qrow gave a final glare at Winter before standing upright with a slight sway. "There. Happy?"

"With you around, never," Winter replied. "The General has sent me a lead to investigate, and seeing as we are quite literally being forced to work together, you'd best be ready."

"When you say Jimmy sent you a lead, do you mean he got one of his little toy soldiers to wrestle some poor Faunus and hold them at gunpoint, or do you mean he finally gave up and tortured Torchwick."

Winter's expression went from scandalized to frustrated in a matter of moments. "Atlas do nothing of the sort, Qrow."

One of Qrow's eyebrows shot up. "You'd better tell Atlas that. Was less than a week ago when I had to break up a scuffle that might've turned into a whole civil conflict."

Winter didn't have anything to say to that, so Qrow chalked that up as a win.

He also backed down somewhat, an internal frustration mounting. "What's the lead?"

Winter brought out her scroll, a sleek black version of the typical model. A couple taps of the screen brought up a holographic projection of Vale, and she quickly navigated it.

"Here, near the wall. White Fang recruitment rallies are still ongoing, and there may be a lieutenant or someone of similar importance that we may be able to snag."

Qrow shook his head. "This isn't Atlas, Ice Queen. We can't bust down a door and start grabbing Faunus by the horns. They'll be up in arms in moments, and the council will be up both our asses in half the time it takes to say 'annoyance'. No black-bagging, no wetwork. This is my turf, we'll play it my way."

Winter raised an eyebrow. "And what way would that be?"

"Easy. I scope it out, and you grab our guy after he leaves and goes home."

Winter didn't object. "I only hope you're as good as they say, considering what I've seen."

Qrow downed the last of his drink, placing the upturned glass on the bar counter. "Please, Icicle. I'll get a good bird's eye view."

* * *

"And with a stunning finish from Mr Flynt, the third match is brought to a close! Well fought both teams!" Port boomed, glancing at Oobleck.

"Yes, quite a remarkable move! We shall now take a break, before resuming the matchups! See you soon, ladies and gentlemen!"

Jaune allowed himself to stand up and stretch. The match hadn't been the fastest so far, but he imagined that there were going to be longer ones as time continued. Once it reached the doubles it would probably take longer, and singles were a toss-up. He didn't really know how that was all going to work out.

Ruby was still gone, most likely in the fairgrounds, and his team were most likely there as well, having told him as much. He was pretty much the placeholder in case their team was called.

Now, though, with the break, he could actually go and join in on the socialising, which would be nice.

It also meant he could level up _Soul Harvest_. He'd been so damn close to a level recently, after all the one-handed training he'd done whilst constructing the Arcave, and the plentiful amount of Regular Soul Orbs he had in his inventory was evidence of that.

He was only a little over 45k XP away from Level 25, in fact. And, considering how all his skills, stats and everything else seemed to work, Level 25 would most likely unlock him a new kind of Soul Orb.

He knew the cost for a new summon was only two Regular Soul Orbs, something he could afford with ease at the moment, but it was the decision of what kind of summon he wanted that was floating around in his head.

Boarbatusk, King Taijitu, Deathstalker, and that wasn't even including any Elementals.

He had the required Dust for a Metal Elemental at the moment, too. He wasn't sure what the Soul Orb cost would be, but he assumed he could afford it, if it was anything like his Bound Souls.

Actually, by that thought process he could technically get a new Bound Soul and a new Elemental.

Which brought him right back around to the choice he'd been avoiding.

And would continue to avoid. There was no sense in trying to learn how a new summon fought in the middle of a tournament.

Jaune slid one hand into his coat pocket, hoping the thick fabric would disguise the creation of a Soul Orb as he walked along the fairgrounds, eyes scanning the crowd for the familiar figures of his friends.

He didn't even have to take his hand out of his pocket to drop it into his inventory, thanks to some clever window manipulation.

He was halfway through creating a second when he spotted the rest of AWBN and all of RRYN sat at a noodle stand, halfway through ordering.

"Hey all!" Jaune gave a wave as he approached, various sounds of greeting finding their way back to him. "How's it going?"

"We're just about to finish ordering, actually," Weiss answered, as Ruby gestured for him to sit in the empty seat next to her.

"Good thing I got here in time then, I'm starving."

Immediately as he sat down, a notification popped up. "Oh, _Soul Harvest_ just hit 25. Nice."

Ruby did a double take. "What harvest?"

Jaune realised what it sounded like. "The name of the skill I use to make Soul Orbs. It's nothing like what you think."

Blake let out a laugh at that. "It does have quite a macabre ring to it, doesn't it?"

Jaune used the cover of the stall to quickly create a new Soul Orb, marvelling at how much brighter it was than the Regular. "I can make Greater Soul Orbs, now. That's pretty cool."

"Ooh! What's it do?" Nora asked, leaning over to peer at the glowing ball.

Jaune _Observed_ it quickly, to find out the answer to the ginger's question.

 **[Greater Soul Orb]**

 **[** _A glowing orb that seems to contain some kind of swirling energy, it is remarkably hard to focus on. Has a very strong glow. Used to evolve Bound Souls from Minor to Greater._ **]**

Everything was pretty typical of the Soul Orb descriptions, but the last part caught his attention. "Evolve a Bound Soul?"

His answer to Nora's question being a question itself seemed to spike the interest of his audience.

"Evolve a Bound Soul? That sounds… new," Pyrrha pointed out, and Jaune nodded.

"Yeah… and probably pretty distracting. Might be a good idea not to do it yet. At least, not without good reason," Blake pointed out. "Maybe wait until we have enough time to go down to the clearing?"

"The Arcave," Jaune corrected.

"I'm not calling it that."

Jaune sagged. "I tried."

Ruby gave him a consolatory pat on the back. "Ssh. We'll convince her someday."

"Ruby, you won't even call it the Arcave."

Ruby shrugged. "Can't win 'em all."

Yang choked back a laugh as Jaune slumped further in his seat.

"Well, regardless of whatever that was, let's eat. My treat," Weiss said, handing her card over to the cashier, who also appeared to be the chef.

It thudded right back at her, digging into the wooden tabletop like it was some kind of weapon.

"What? Declined? How is that possible?!"

Weiss seemed actually shocked that having her card declined was a thing that could happen.

"Here, let me," Jaune said, just as Pyrrha said quite literally the exact same thing.

They shared a glance, and Pyrrha handed over the lien. "You sure, Pyrrha?"

Pyrrha let out a rueful smile. "What point is there in having Lien if you don't spend it for a good cause?"

Jaune had to agree. His newfound wealth aside, he'd never truly understood those that hoarded for the sake of hoarding.

Acquisition of wealth without purpose was never high on his list of priorities.

Food was served with alarming alacrity, bowls of variety-topping noodles skidding to a halt in front of them. Jaune was somewhat confused as to how that had happened, but he accepted it without much thought, as if questioning the legitimacy of the food would cost him said food, and he was quite hungry.

Nothing like waiting in anticipation to build up an appetite.

Jaune dug into his noodles, watching in amusement as Blake's serving, topped with what looked to be an entire tuna, was effectively worshipped by the black-haired Faunus.

He wasn't the only blond to notice, either.

"Hey Blake, guys!" A voice called out, followed by the sound of approaching footsteps.

The eight turned to see Sun and Neptune approaching, the waving monkey Faunus bearing his trademark grin. Following behind them were two other teens, one's that Jaune didn't recognize.

"Guys, this is the rest of my team, Sage Ayana and Scarlet David!" Sun continued, motioning to the two teens, a hulking green-haired man with the same taste in fashion as Sun, though with added tattoos, and the other was far more, well, dressed, a mop of red hair covering one side of his face.

They were halfway through introducing themselves to everyone when Port and Oobleck piped back up.

"Welcome back one and all to the 40th Vytal Tournament. Let's not waste any time, and get right into it! Our first team is from all the way in Vacuo from Shade Academy, Team BRNZ, led by Brawnz Ni, with Roy Stallion, Nolan Porifio and May Zedong!" Port belted out over the speakers in the festival grounds.

"Versus the all-male team from Mistral's Haven Academy we have Team SSSN, led by Sun Wukong, with Scarlet David, Sage Ayana and Neptune Vasilias! This looks to be a good match, and it starts in just two minutes!" Oobleck finished.

"That's us, I guess!" Sun exclaimed, already moving back towards the shuttles to the stadium. "Come on, we've only got two minutes to get back!"

His team sighed a variety of sighs, seemingly unwilling to match the level of energy that Sun was displaying, but it was easy to tell that they were more for comedic effect than anything else, and that there was an underlying kind of excitement they held, buzzing under their somewhat steadier facades.

"Good luck! We'll be cheering for you!" Jaune called out, receiving a rapidly retreating thumbs-up from the fellow blond leader.

Jaune had faith that Team SSSN would win. He'd already seen Sun and Neptune fight, Sun especially, and they had a level of skill that was unmatched by any other team they'd seen fight so far, besides maybe Penny's team.

Then again Penny looked to be around Pyrrha's level of skill, so that was a bit unfair to compare her to the rest.

Jaune would relish the opportunity to test himself against any team of the skill that they were displaying, but first he'd have to wait for AWBN to be called.

"So, who is being sent to the doubles round on your team, Ruby?" Pyrrha asked, already shifting the flow of the conversation.

"Well, we put it to a vote, and then Ren said he'd rather not, and I figured that I'm not built for fighting people, cause Uncle Qrow always put me up against Grimm, so we decided that Yang and Nora would be going forward," Ruby explained, finishing her bowl. "That and anyone going up against Yang and Nora are going to probably be terrified. They have reputations for reasons."

Well, she wasn't wrong, Jaune had to admit. Most of Beacon were nervous around one of the two powerhouses. Seeing both coming for you with a thirst for blood would make a lesser Hunter tremble.

"Is it strange that I really don't want to go up against you guys in the doubles round now?" Jaune remarked, half-serious.

"What's wrong, Jaune? Can't handle someone a little… bigger than Ruby?" Yang teased, leaning forward.

Jaune pointedly ignored her. "I really don't want to be on the receiving end of Nora, to be honest."

Nora's grin widened as Yang huffed. "Now I really wanna break some legs!"

"Nora, at least wait until we are called up once more," Ren said, and Jaune noted that it wasn't a refusal. Either he had given up, or secretly wanted Nora to do some limb-cracking.

He wouldn't outright admit that he was a little worried about his match, as illogical as it sounded to him, but he would admit that the nervousness came with a level of excitement.

He was honestly surprised to find himself unable to wait until AWBN were called up.

* * *

SSSN had won, that much was obvious. It was apparent that BRNZ wasn't enough to halt the cheery blond Faunus and his team.

AWBN and RRYN had made their way back to the stadium at this point, a variety of toppings acquired for their gigantic buckets of popcorn that Jaune had so generously bought for what amounted to a little less than thirty Lien.

Another match, CRDL versus a team known as TWLT, made up of Tenebrae Umbra, Wolfsige Noctus, Lazarus Morningstar and Tristessa Vespera, had played out, and Jaune and co were surprised to watch CRDL just barely pull a victory, through absolutely no strategy and complete, blind luck. Turned out that TWLT, being from Atlas, were far less used to the desert than CRDL, who at least knew what it was like to not be permanently covered in snow.

Now, though, they were waiting, breath abated, for the next announcement. The next match, the next matchup.

"Oh-ho-ho, what's this? This sounds like a match for the ages!" Port began, a cheerful expression covered by his bushy facial hair. "It seems out next match is a competition for who is truly the stronger team worthy of bearing this name!"

Oobleck wore a rare smile. "Indeed, Peter. Hailing from Haven, we have Team ABRN, led by Arslan Altan, with Bolin Hori, Reese Chloris and Nadir Shiko, versus Beacon's very own premier first year team, AWBN, led by Jaune Arc, with Weiss Schnee, Blake Belladonna and Pyrrha Nikos! Now that's a team composition of rather well known individuals!"

Jaune let out a stunned laugh. AWBN versus ABRN? Port was right, this was going to be about who made the better auburn.

"Knock 'em dead, Jauney!" Nora cheered, throwing her hands in the air in excitement, one hand gripping one of Ren's arms, his half-hearted cheer more emotion than Jaune could recall him showing.

"Do us proud Pyr!" Yang let out.

"You guys have got this. No sweat," Ruby said, giving all of AWBN a smile, before focusing on Jaune. "Good luck."

She was quick as ever, placing her lips on his own for a moment, much to her own embarrassment as Nora and Yang cheered even louder.

"Let's go, team. We've got a match to win."

* * *

Stepping onto the field was a nerve-wracking experience, Jaune realised. You didn't quite get a grasp of just how loud the cheering was until you were in the very middle of it, the subject of it.

Pyrrha seemed at home, which wasn't a surprise, and he knew Weiss had experience with crowds and public performances, so it wasn't like she was entirely out of her element.

Blake was just good at concealing her emotions, so it wasn't as if there was much for him to glean from the normally quiet girl.

So, he guessed he would just have to toughen up and handle the sudden influx of attention.

He'd never even shown any kind of part of the System to this many people before. He didn't even think there were over fifteen people in the world who had seen him use it.

This was going to be a shock to a number of people, his family included. He'd never actually explained a lot of what he'd done the last time he'd seen them, so this was going to seem a little strange.

That and the fact it would make him look almost like a bastard Schnee. That was going to be a fun little surprise.

At least he knew that ABRN wouldn't have any idea about his capabilities.

Which meant he'd get to pull off his favorite tactic, of concealing every advantage until he needed to bring one out.

They stopped walking, having reached the center of the stage, and in front of them stood ABRN, their leader in the middle of flexing her fingers.

"So, you're the other Auburn. Can't say I'm all that surprised to find you with at least one other celebrity, Pyrrha. Always were too good for the rest of us normal people."

Jaune immediately went on the defensive, hand gripping tight Crocea Mors.

Pyrrha helped him relax with a single calming hand on his shoulder. "Arslan. I see you still believe I was anything but cordial with you. Perhaps we should have fought properly years ago, you might have a different opinion if we had."

Arslan rolled her eyes. "Doubt it, Invincible Girl."

"Without further adieu, let us see our arena environment!" Oobleck exclaimed, as the holographic projections began to spin.

Jaune watched as it landed on geyser fields and urban, and he watched with mild worry as the platforms began to rise, bringing with it rubble, water and various other obstacles.

He'd say there was no home-field advantage, but considering the amount of time he and his team had spent in Mountain Glenn, that wasn't entirely accurate. He couldn't say the same for geysers, but to be fair it was just a lot of wet rocks.

Well, there was a little more to it than that, but still, the point remained the same.

He stepped forward, drawing Crocea Mors, deploying its shield on his arm, waiting.

His team drew their weapons, and he watched as ABRN did the same, albeit some of them being a little less obvious than his own, and some being so ostentatious he actually performed a real, physical double-take. A hoverboard? That was a new one.

"Now, let us begin, as soon as the horn sounds!" Port practically bellowed. His excitement was palpable, as was the audience's. He imagined that had something to do with the fact that he had not only Pyrrha on his team, but Weiss as well.

Jaune waited a single, tense second.

Another passed by him.

A third physics-defyingly long second passed.

The horn sounded.

* * *

 **I know, it's a cliffhanger. I couldn't resist. I'll just get right into reviews, and only a couple this week. I'm still super busy.**

 **armentho: I'd love to spend a few minutes to discuss all of this, but I won't. Instead, I'll just say that your ideas are, as usual, great, and the Mana Scan may be implemented.**

 **Shadow of God: Yeah, I felt like titles working more as 'equippable perks' felt a little better, especially considering there are a number of perks already that cover a number of different things.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: Hey, by all means, you use it, it is your idea. Systema's got enough stuff going on already, to be fair.**

 **I know I haven't done all that many replies this week, sorry all! Just unfortunate timing, is all.**

 **As always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	47. No Time For A Grudge Match

**Uh. Sorry. I know, I just disappeared for two weeks straight. Some stuff happened, stuff I won't get into. Lost some motivation and free time, but now everything should be all sorted. Expect a chapter next week, and every week onwards. A somewhat-rare late week from me, is all. Unfortunate it had to happen on a cliffhanger, but sometimes I don't have the option to choose. Enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Thunderously powerful fist met shield with a resounding gong-like noise that reverberated him down to his very bones as Arslan punched.

It felt like he'd just blocked a tank shell.

It had been so blindingly fast that he hadn't managed to do anything but brace for impact.

Jaune knew his team could handle what was happening, though. They'd trained for this for months, always with Goodwitch practically breathing down their necks.

It was a style of fighting they were used to by now. Blake broke free of the ranks, taking ABRN's most mobile fighter, Reese, with her, the hoverboard-wielding girl speeding off towards where Blake had retreated amongst the rubble.

Pyrrha was quick to take his place in combating Arslan, the two seeming to focus solely on each other after Arslan's initial attack, which Jaune surmised was entirely just to rile Pyrrha up.

Weiss appeared to be narrowly avoiding bullets fired from a bladed-rifle held by Nadir, glyphs pushing her around as she maneuvered around his line of fire, before using a glyph to shoot forwards and deal a painful blow.

Jaune had no more time to look around as a staff almost clocked him in the head, narrowly missing as it struck the top of his shield instead.

This was Bolin, or so the process of elimination dictated.

The boy ducked backwards, spinning his staff. "You just gonna stand there and take the hits, or are you gonna fight?"

Jaune wordlessly obliged, taking a deliberately heavy step forward, followed by another.

It was much slower than he usually moved, a deliberate feint to throw the staff-wielder off.

It worked. A dismissive laugh was rapidly followed by three precise jabs from the end of the staff in three different locations, only one managing to be pushed away as Jaune flicked it aside with his shield, attempting to return a stab at the teen.

It missed, Bolin sidestepping it with a combined side-strike that struck metal, clanging off of Jaune's shield once more.

"So, you're the 'impenetrable defense' kind of guy. I can understand that," Bolin remarked, five rapid strikes hitting Jaune in different places, an attempt at wearing him down. "Shame you can't move fast enough to do anything. I'll just whittle you down until the rest of my team can help speed up the process."

This guy was cocky. It wasn't that big a surprise, to be fair, especially after the 'conversation', if you could really call it that, that Arslan had shared with Pyrrha.

Jaune continued advancing forwards.

Blows kept coming, and Jaune blocked or deflected as many as he could, occasionally trying to deliver a strike, which failed every time.

And still, Jaune kept advancing forwards. Which kept Bolin moving backwards.

Bolin was quite quick on his feet, to be fair, but quick with his mind the boy was not.

To his credit, he noticed that Jaune was driving him towards a geyser, and quickly decided he didn't want to play Jaune's game any longer, darting sideways.

Jaune moved. Faster than Bolin had been expecting. Faster than wide majority of the audience had expected.

Jaune's shield bashed against Bolin with enough power to send him stumbling backwards in a daze, staff hanging loosely in one hand.

His follow-up strike with Crocea Mors turned Bolin's ninety percent Aura into a twenty-two percent.

It also drove the boy to the floor so fast he lost track of where he was. One moment he was standing, disoriented, the next he was on the floor, even more disoriented.

The crowd ooh-ed as the stone cracked around where Bolin had landed, and internally, Jaune did the same. He hadn't quite meant for the _Power_ boosted attack to be quite so… devastating. At least it kept up his appearance as a, well, heavier Pyrrha-like combatant.

Bolin was about to stand up, one hand wobbling as it applied weight on his staff, and Jaune had to admit, for someone as cocky as he had been, he was still quite capable.

Regardless, it was time to end this fight, or at least one of the four. Crocea Mors glinted in the stadium light as it carved through the air, intent of turning Bolin's Aura to shrapnel.

It never made it, a bullet ricocheting off of the blade with enough force to drive it off course, barely scraping Bolin's hastily raised staff.

Nadir had approached, and Weiss was nowhere to be seen. She hadn't been eliminated, at least. He would've heard the announcement.

Jaune raised his shield and attempted to attack Bolin again, only to have another bullet drive the blade out of the way.

Jaune sighed. It couldn't just be so simple. Then again, he did enjoy a good challenge. Bolin flicked his staff out, an attempt to deal at least a little bit more damage to the 'distracted' Jaune, only to have Crocea Mors hit the ground, the end of Bolin's staff firmly in Jaune's grip.

There was nothing Bolin could do aside from relinquish his weapon or maintain his grip, and considering he was a Hunter, he decided to maintain his grip, only to be pulled closer and have his face meet Jaune's shield once more.

He could feel the crowd's wince from where he stood, as he released his grip and, still under the cover of his raised shield, retrieved Crocea Mors from the ground, turning to face Nadir, even as rounds pelted off the metal of his shield.

"And with that devastating blow that was sure to knock some sense into poor Bolin, he finds himself eliminated by way of Aura loss! Tough luck, Bolin, better luck next time!" Port announced.

Jaune allowed himself a small smile behind his shield, which rapidly disappeared as a bullet nicked the Aura on his shin.

He almost made the crucial mistake of lowering his shield, instead making the conscious effort last second to not get shot in the head, instead lowering his stance so that his shield almost covered him completely, presenting the smallest target he could as he drew Nadir's fire.

He could barely move like this, however, but he had a plan. Well, he hoped he had a plan. It was more or less dependant on keeping Nadir's attention on him until-

Weiss did as he was hoping, hitting Nadir hard enough that it drove the rifle-toting boy to his knees, only to have two glyphs, one above and one below, begin to crush him, slowly pressing down on him.

"Easy, Weiss. We're not trying to kill the guy," Jaune remarked, standing once again.

"Speak for yourself. He shot me out of the air with a Lightning Dust round. I couldn't move for at least a few seconds."

Despite her outrage, she did halt the pressure, instead keeping him pinned in between the glyphs.

"With that, Nadir is unable to continue fighting! What a ruthless display of teamwork and aggression from Weiss and Jaune!" Oobleck remarked.

"How do you think Blake is-" Jaune was barely halfway through his question when Port interrupted him.

"And with that well-thought-out plan from Blake, Reese finds herself out of the match by way of a double knock-out!"

Jaune, now with his question answered, moved onto his next one. "So, should we go help Pyrrha? Seems like she's got a grudge to settle."

Weiss allowed herself a small shrug. "That depends. Do we value the grudge-match or avoiding Professor Goodwitch's wrath more?"

Jaune paled. "I don't think I should be the one to make that decision."

"Truer words were never spoken. We shall watch, and if we believe Pyrrha does not have it handled, we shall intervene."

Jaune nodded.

* * *

Pyrrha and Arslan were not that hard to find. Partly because all that was required was to go where the shouting and loud sounds of fist smacking against metal was coming from.

"That's right, Invincible Girl. Keep waiting for your team to show up and pull your ass out of the fire!" Arslan shouted.

Pyrrha would have laughed if she wasn't in public. Blake was already watching, staying out of sight like usual. Jaune and Weiss would be here momentarily.

She didn't want them to help, though. Not just because this was her hard-fought reputation on the line, either.

She had a score to settle. One nearly as old as she was.

"I don't need my team to help me finish this, Arslan. It's just you and me. Isn't that how you always wanted it?"

Pyrrha circled Arslan, the two stalking around the center of the arena.

"I've gotten stronger, Pyrrha. Strongest in Mistral, ever since you left. Stronger than you."

Pyrrha stopped circling, bracing herself against her shield. "Prove it."

Arslan's face was not like normal. She was normally a calm, collected individual, her team could attest to that.

Pyrrha could say otherwise. It was almost like her own competitive spirit brought out the worst in the dark-skinned girl.

Arslan's fist struck Akouo with a resounding echo, like a gong being struck by a flying Ursa, and Pyrrha gritted her teeth.

She only knew one person who had that kind of power behind a strike.

It was a good thing that Pyrrha had spent most of her time at Beacon outside of class sparring with her.

Pyrrha pushed through the pain, using the latent momentum that Arslan had to force her in close as the other girl's arm slid off the side of Akouo, arm fitting perfectly into the rounded divot in the shield.

Arslan tried to pull away, only to find Pyrrha locking Milo behind her neck, Akouo being pushed harder and harder.

Arslan couldn't move her arms, so she kicked up, kneeing Pyrrha in the inner thigh, trying to dislodge the taller girl's footing, only to find her head suddenly throbbing as Pyrrha executed a move that not a single person, Arslan included, had expected.

Pyrrha headbutted Arslan, the brunt of her forehead meeting the bridge of Arslan's nose.

It was too much, and Arslan lifted both her legs, placing them on Pyrrha's chest and pushing, ignoring the searing pain of Milo scraping against her back, Aura flaring as she managed to finally build up some distance.

It was the strangest way of fighting, and it confused Arslan. Was Pyrrha doing it on purpose?

It didn't matter. Tricks weren't exclusive to Pyrrha, though the redhead using them was somewhat unexpected.

Arslan let out a roar, flipping as she flung her rope-dart out, watching as it barely missed her opponent, who instead slid underneath it, already running close.

But Arslan wasn't finished. Bringing her arms up in guard, she swayed sideways, narrowly missing the slash that would have cut straight through as she sidestepped another, completely on the defensive.

Then her dart rushed back to her hand, hooking around Akouo and pulling it free from Pyrrha's grip, all in a single movement.

It was fast, blindingly so, and not even Arslan could track its movements. It was a risky maneuver, so much so that she risked hitting herself with the shield, but it worked, sending the circular metal plate soaring into the arena, far enough away that Pyrrha wouldn't be able to retrieve it.

Unless, of course, her blond team leader caught it out of the air in a display of dexterity that she definitely hadn't been expecting from someone like him.

Pyrrha didn't waste time focusing on that, though, and Arslan's distraction costed her dearly, Milo biting into the Aura that covered her stomach, punching through her temporarily lowered guard and sending the blonde girl backwards a few feet simply from the force behind it.

Arslan let out a cough, sucking in air, and struck back, Aura covered fist meeting blade as she struck it on its side, other hand snaking towards Pyrrha, who, now without a shield, had no way of blocking it.

Caught in a grab, Pyrrha found herself flung overhead, arcing over Arslan's head and landing with a grunt and a plume of dust.

Arslan wasn't going to let this be the end of it, though, and was already capitulating on the landing, pouncing atop the bronze-armored girl, fists pounding a rhythm into Milo as Pyrrha used it to block the strikes, one hand on the grip and the other on the blade.

Not content to lay there and take it, Pyrrha attempted to buck her hips, to throw Arslan off, pulling one leg in fast enough that when Arslan landed once more, she was now precariously balanced, with Pyrrha's foot on her chest.

She had all of a single moment to widen her eyes before the foot pushed hard, flinging the blonde off and sending her into the wall of a ruined building, at the cost of some of Pyrrha's Aura.

Back to where they started. It was almost funny.

Arslan was about to make another move when Akouo hit her in the back, and Pyrrha looked as equally surprised.

A glyph froze Arslan's feet to the ground, coating them in a thick layer of ice.

Arslan, in a last ditch effort, flung her rope-dart out at Pyrrha once more.

The sound of a gun discharging ended that attack, the dart meeting the bullet in midair and being forced into the ground, cord falling slack behind it.

"That's enough. Look at you."

Arslan turned with a vicious glare at Jaune, who was approaching slowly, weapons sheathed.

"Jaune, why interrupt now?" Pyrrha asked, panting.

Jaune didn't answer Pyrrha, instead closing the distance between himself and the leader of ABRN.

"You sacrificed your entire team just to get a chance to fight Pyrrha. For a grudge. It didn't matter to you, because you'd get a chance to, what, prove that you're stronger?"

Arslan's glare didn't falter, but neither did Jaune.

"You know, even if you'd won, you'd still have lost. I wonder how your team feels about that, or did you even bother to ask them?"

This time, her glare did falter.

Jaune spared a glance up to the projection, noting that her Aura was sitting at about thirty percent.

"You can either surrender, or take the hit. Which would you prefer?"

"I'll take the hit. Coward."

That riled Jaune up, and he couldn't explain why. "What, you think that because we all got into your little grudge match that we're cowards? Because we're not willing to watch a teammate die?"

Arslan rolled her eyes. "It's a tournament."

Jaune didn't relent. "And when it isn't? We're cowards for taking our jobs, our lives, seriously?"

Arslan refused to meet his eyes at that.

"Fine then. Just do it."

Jaune did.

* * *

"So… that was a thing."

Jaune had to agree with Yang's assessment.

"Yeah. I, uh, I think Pyrrha's a little mad at me, to be honest."

The two were currently fetching a new round of popcorn, before the next match was to be announced.

There was also a floating notification he'd been meaning to get to since he'd finished the match, but he would get to that when he had a chance to sit down.

"I'd probably be pretty angry too, if you'd interrupted what looked like an age-old grudge match."

Jaune shrugged. "To be fair, it was a team match. If it was the singles rounds then it'd be a little more fitting, you know?"

Yang handed him half of the large buckets, precariously balancing her own half in her arms. "True. Considering how many times Goodwitch has drilled it into our heads, it does make sense. Still, I'd be grumpy. More so at myself than you, though, and I reckon it's the same with Pyrrha."

Jaune had to agree with that. Besides, he knew his partner pretty well by now, he liked to think. Pyrrha was more than likely frustrated that she hadn't been able to finish the fight as quickly as he imagined she would have liked.

Room for improvement, Pyrrha Nikos? Most would say otherwise, but he knew that Pyrrha would vehemently, but politely, decline that suggestion.

"I'll talk with her anyway, see if there's anything I can do to 'alleviate her stress'," Yang remarked.

Jaune decided he'd just ignore that.

Thankfully, the opportunity to do just that arrived, his saving grace for the first and last time being the voice of Peter Port over the speakers.

"Let's move onto our next match, ladies and gentlemen! For our first team, we have… Team FLIT, from Atlas, led by Flare Archid, with Lillith Wrath, Iren Roust and Tera Verdant, versus…"

Oobleck continued on. "Team CFVY, from Beacon, led by Coco Adel, with Fox Alistair, Velvet Scarlatina and Yatsuhashi Daichi. This is already shaping up to be an interesting match between second-years!"

If Jaune remembered correctly, this was to be the second last match of the team rounds. Which meant, it was also the second last match of the day, before they had to get ready for the next day's doubles rounds.

He and Pyrrha versus any of the day's winners. Well, he'd faced worse odds.

* * *

CFVY had won, albeit barely. It had been a close match, with a bunch of interesting semblances on the team from Atlas, but CFVY had scraped through with a down-to-the-wire clutch that had Yatsuhashi quite literally use his own body mass to slam one of the others into the ground.

Jaune enjoyed watching it, he realised. It was a good distraction, the eight of them sitting and cheering with varying amounts of enthusiasm, feasting away on the exorbitant amounts of popcorn they had available.

Seriously, it was a ridiculous amount of popcorn. He didn't quite know why they served popcorn in buckets this big. He'd seen entire dinners for twenty people with less food than a single one of these buckets.

If he ate anymore popcorn he would die. Nothing would be able to save him, his veins would pump liquid salt, and his heart would clog. He'd die, wishing for something to drink, all because he got carried away and continued to feast on the absurd popcorn bucket.

Jaune allowed his attention to wander for only a few more indescribably inexplicable moments before he returned to the land of the soon-to-be-not-living-thanks-to-popcorn-overdose.

"So, one last match today? Do we know who it is?" He asked, discreetly placing his bucket on the ground under his seat, for later. Meaning never, but he didn't need to say it outright.

Ruby, who was sat next to him, shook her head. "Nope. But I think Professor Port is going to announce it in a moment, so we should know soon!"

Somehow, she'd eaten two-and-a-half buckets of popcorn. Frankly, Jaune was amazed. Then again, considering her semblance, he had to imagine Ruby burned calories like Yang burned people when they got on her bad side. So, often, and in large quantities.

The notification, as of yet unchecked, still hovered in his periphery, existing and yet also not existing in the existential-crisis kind of way that they all seemed to inhabit. He'd ignored it up until now, simply because he wanted to watch the fight, and not become bogged down with new and/or dangerous semblance things.

But now, well, he'd noticed it once more, and there was nothing incredibly pressing that would make him put it off once more.

He brought it to the forefront of his mind, which also just happened to make it manifest in the air, visible only to him as it always was.

A quest reward?

He read it through. He hadn't even remembered getting a quest, let alone completing it, though considering there was a reward here, he had to imagine he had in fact received one. Maybe he'd been so absorbed in the fight that he hadn't noticed?

Food for thought, perhaps.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[40th Vytal Tournament: Round One]**

 **[** _ **Win the first round of the 40th Vytal Tournament.**_ **]**

 **[Rewards: Rare Skill Book, New Title Slot]**

Wait. Wait just a single moment. A new title slot?

Did that mean a new title, or…

Jaune quickly brought up his player menu, and noticed the second slot for another title. "Holy crap."

At this point, Ruby had very much noticed that Jaune had started staring at the air with jaw agape, and was patiently waiting, though his outburst was certainly unexpected. "What is it?"

"Did I ever tell you about my titles?" Jaune asked, looking to Ruby, who was currently bouncing up and down in her seat in anticipation.

"You might've briefly mentioned them, or I wasn't really listening, either or. Why?"

"Well, up until this point, I've been limited to using one at a time. Now, I just got a second slot. That's a game-changer."

Ruby 'ooh-ed', before frowning. "Did you seriously make a pun?"

Jaune opened his mouth, before also frowning. "Oh gods, I did. I'm so sorry. It was unintentional, I swear."

Once Jaune had promptly removed his foot from his mouth and Ruby had, albeit jokingly, accepted his apology, he resumed his investigation of his newfound title slot.

So many options. Some of them actually worked in conjunction with other titles, and he realised that if, and only if, he figured out some of the combos, he could become remarkably powerful through titles alone.

Another little facet of the System, he supposed. Maybe he was just a giant beta test for all the parts of the System to see where a player would invariably find themselves. The meta, so to speak, or at least that was what everyone on the forums he'd read through called it.

That was, of course, relying on the theory that he was living his life inside a literal video game, one of many theories he'd come up with over the past few months.

He could practically pluck an idea out of sci-fi and assign it to his life, though, so it wasn't that hard.

Running Huntsman and Banker at the same time was a great way to build up a surplus of XP and Lien from fighting Grimm, which he imagined he'd be doing a lot of in the future. Likewise, running Soul Tamer and Armsmaster would make him able to take on threats with ease, like, for example, whoever he'd be up against in the doubles rounds.

With some deft movement from his fingers, Jaune swapped his titles around to Soul Tamer and Armsmaster.

He didn't feel any different, though it wasn't like he'd been expecting to, so it came as no surprise to him.

But, he knew that Alcmena, Cadejo, Callisto and Electrus would be stronger. How much stronger would remain to be seen, but he imagined it would be enough that even if he had to fight against two Pyrrha-level fighters he'd be capable of going toe-to-toe with them.

Then there was the new skill book, which was apparently rare. He brought up his inventory and quickly scanned through, looking for it.

 _Stasis_ , or so the skill was called. He didn't even have to take it out of his inventory to read it, which was nice.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Stasis (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can seal a target in stasis, preventing the target from doing anything, but making it immune to damage. Stasis lasts for a short time. Costs 80 MP to cast._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

It was an interesting skill, too. One of the skills that required a little more thought behind its usage rather than being something he could just fire out ad nauseum.

Now, though, wasn't time for deep reminiscing, or future planning. The last match was about to begin.

"Our last match for the day, one that bears the mark of being a good one! First up we have Team ENVY, from Beacon, led by Nabala Emeraude, with Nero Vince Green, Veema Lotion and Ymil Dosza, versus…"

"Haven Academy's Team EMBR! Led by Emerald Sustrai, with Marseille Noir, Mercury Black and Romana Torch! I do so look forward to this match, Peter."

Jaune settled in to watch. If Oobleck thought it would be interesting, it might very well be just that.

* * *

"He knew nothing."

Qrow scoffed. "Course he didn't. He was a two-bit terrorist amongst more two-bit terrorists. I'm surprised he didn't try to resist. More a coward than a revolutionary."

"For once, I can't help but agree with you. We're getting nowhere, Branwen. This is the third raid we've conducted, and we've learned nothing. It's beginning to get frustrating," Winter replied, nursing a glass, a frown gracing her otherwise flawless face.

Qrow downed his own glass, refilling it from the bottle on the bartop. "Yeah, I know. Maybe we're going about it wrong?"

Winter took the proffered bottle, refilling her own glass. "You have a better suggestion?"

"Maybe we go talk to a couple people who seem to have a little more experience with the Fang. Personal experience. Maybe even recruit a few of 'em."

"Who're you talking about, Qrow?"

Qrow smirked. "Why, I think we met them just the other day."

* * *

 **Not much for me to get into down here, except reviews, so allow me to get stuck into it!**

 **Shadow of God: Don't worry, I'd forgotten about ABRN when I originally named AWBN. That was a somewhat-awkward revelation.**

 **drannakka: Maybe, but not just yet. Jaune likes to keep his cards close to his chest, and blowing one of many immediately kind of ruins the surprise. And reveals to the world one of the many facets of his 'semblance'. He's always keeping Ozpin's advice in the back of his mind in these kinds of situations, I like to think.**

 **typhonyx: That's pretty much the idea I had for Alcmena when I first introduced her. The idea of a Ho-oh shaped bird to ride around on really appealed to me. Don't forget though, Jaune does have the ability to create more Soul Orbs.**

 **armentho: The problem with intermission chapters where the focus strays from Jaune is where I draw the line. I could very well write a section dedicated to what the villains are doing, as I have before, but Jaune is very much the main character. If I reveal too much, it can create a disconnect between what Jaune knows and the reader knows, and whilst that can work sometimes, I feel like it would only contribute to discontent further down the line. We already suffer a kind of discontent with canon with many of those things, like the silver eyes, for example, up until Volume 6. I'm trying to stray away from that, and keep the focus where it is, on Jaune, and interactions with or concerning Jaune.**

 **razmire: You think I plan anything? You have far too much faith in me lmao.**

 **jedimasterb10: You may get your wish, many chapters in the future. We'll just have to see where it takes us.**

 **FORD B: Welcome back! Glad you're enjoying it!**

 **Haxler: I'm sorry! I know, I was late! At least you enjoyed it!**

 **Quantum qwazi: To be fair, I never claimed I did, and as such decided to take some creative license with the way things work. Take it with a grain of salt.**

 **Wolf Guard Miestwin: Like I said to Quantum qwazi, creative license, and technically Jaune has been improving. Early chapters I kept it slow, tested the waters, but at this point, you can see that not only is he improving, but there is a rate of progression that finds itself conducive to a more story-focused progression than a gameplay focus. It's just the way it works.**

 **HeWhoWalksAlo: So, from what I can see, Armiger Unleashed is like some kind of storm of swords? Best way I can describe it, I'm not at all familiar with any of the Final Fantasy games, never played any, which is a crime, I'm sure. It's an interesting concept, but is less of a skill and more of a series of skills used in conjunction with each other. Multiple casts of Mana Lance would serve the same effect without the need of bloating the skill list. It is, however, borderlining on what I did have planned for a later fight, so you may yet see it.**

 **Guest (1): His skill in crafting will eventually outpace Ruby, yeah. That is, if he dedicates time to leveling it. Which, considering how much of an overarching skill it is, will no doubt happen. I have plans for the crafting skill to be somewhat reworked soon, and have spent a little time working on that, so you may see it soon.**

 **Guest (2): Absolutely. Many of the Kinesis skills will see use in more combat-oriented situations, especially considering that, as it stands, XP is most easily gained from combat encounters. The idea of tripping people up with minutely adjusted terrain is a great idea, and using Dust to cover the more obtuse alterations is also something useful. That is, if Jaune can actually get a hold of some Dust. Someone seems to have taken quite a bit of it, and it's price has raised somewhat significantly since that started.**

 **GL: I'm going to be straight with you. If you wanted to read a story that was all grinding, you're in the wrong place. It'd be really, really boring to read about someone killing Grimm all chapter every chapter. Even more so to write. Plus, Jaune's dream was to go to Beacon. Finding out his semblance didn't change that, instead it bolstered his confidence to do so.**

 **Deans1000: You are right, most likely. I mention 'The Gamer' moreso as my first experience with the LitRPG genre rather than the first example of it. I've read hundreds of LitRPGs by now, though, and can safely say that there are many names for the idea.**

 **That about does it, once again sorry for missing the past couple weeks, but I'm back, ready to write, and pumped for the future. Thank you all for sticking around!**

 **I have a twitter fat_flying and a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale if you want to stay up-to-date and in contact or to support me and my writing, though that isn't necessary.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	48. The Build-Up

**Back once again with the weekly dosage of Systema for all of you lovely folk. Been working on a lot of stuff in the background for this chapter, and the crafting rework is coming along swimmingly. I'm rolling it out steadily, so expect to see some of it!**

* * *

Jaune winced as the booted foot of the girl known as Romana Torch stomped down hard on the head of the last remaining member of Team ENVY.

Next to him, Ruby sucked in air, wincing herself. "That would hurt."

Jaune nodded. "I guess that's what happens when you have Professor Aurum as your team's tutor."

Jaune could see now as Emerald practically preened under the somewhat-dismissive amber-eyed gaze the professor from Haven was giving the team.

Blake, however, frowned, her focus on one of the other members of the team. "I think I've met one of them before."

Jaune whipped his head around to face his Faunus teammate, who'd leaned over the top of his chair to get a better look. "Which one?"

"The one with the really long black hair. Marseille Noir, I think Oobleck said her name was. She looks familiar."

Jaune looked towards the girl, trying a quick _Observe_ , only for it to fail from the distance he was trying it. "You ever been to Mistral?"

Blake nodded. "Couple of times, working."

Working, meaning when Blake was in the White Fang, Jaune understood. "Might've bumped into her then, I guess."

Blake nodded. "Sounds about right. Speaking of familiar people, though, we should get out of here before the crowds start trying to talk to us. With Pyrrha and Weiss, we may just get swamped."

Ruby nodded alongside Jaune. "We can go into town, get some ice cream or something!"

To Jaune, that sounded like a brilliant idea. "I've been meaning to go investigate a few stores in town too, now that you mention it. Sounds like fun, anyone else down?"

Yang practically seized the opportunity with both hands. "Hell yeah! Shopping trip!"

Blake rolled her eyes. "I guess I'll tag along. I've been meaning to pick up some new books."

"I'd love to join you all," Pyrrha spoke, albeit somewhat quieter than usual.

"Woo! I'm with Yang, shopping trip!" Nora cheered, both arms up in the air as she nearly began bouncing upon her chair, only to have Ren take her shoulders and force her back down into a sitting position.

"I shall join, if only to keep Nora away from anything catastrophic," Ren spoke, though a smile ghosted across his face as he said it.

"I must head to the CCT regardless, so I would appreciate the company on the trip," Weiss explained.

A round of confirmations, it appeared. Jaune, de facto leader in the situation, considering Ruby was more than content to follow him, stood up and stretched, rubbing his back from where the chair had been rubbing against him. "We'd better get to the Bullhead dock now, then, otherwise it's going to be packed with people leaving."

A voice interrupted their travel, making the eight spin in place. "Actually, Mr Arc, I was wondering if I may speak with one of your team."

Ozpin, leaning against his cane, stood with a passive expression on his face. "Would you be so kind as to spare Ms Nikos? I shan't take too much of your time, but it will be long enough that it would be best for Ms Nikos to catch up."

Jaune looked to Pyrrha, who seemed surprised. "Why me, if you don't mind me asking, Professor?"

Ozpin nodded sagely instead of answering. "I shall explain that in due course, Ms Nikos. If you would? My office is our destination."

Pyrrha gave a half-hearted wave to her friends and allowed herself to be led away by Ozpin, the redhead keeping pace easily with the greying man.

"Any idea what that's about, Jaune?" Yang asked, a concerned look on her face.

Jaune shook his head. "I think that's the first time Ozpin's wanted to talk with any of us besides me, so I haven't got a clue."

Jaune turned back. "Ozpin did say Pyrrha would catch up so, ice cream?"

* * *

"You want to bring my sister and her team in on this?" Winter exclaimed, a shocked expression on her face. "What experience do they truly have with tracking the White Fang?"

Qrow raised an eyebrow. "Don't tell me Ice Queen Junior didn't tell you about her extra-curricular activities. Like the time she and her team fought Roman Torchwick after a White Fang rally. Or the time she and her team discovered a hidden White Fang base in Mountain Glenn. Or the time she and her team joined Jimmy's strikeforce back to Mountain Glenn."

Winter shook her head. "I have been informed of those times, Branwen. However, there is a significant difference between investigating blatantly obvious leads and discovering new, untapped leads on a terrorist force that has completely dropped off the grid."

Qrow shrugged. "Worth a shot, at least. Unless you have any bright ideas."

Winter placed her glass down, hand coming to rest against her chin as she thought. "We could try Torchwick again. Perhaps there is something he knows that you could get out of him. He doesn't seem to believe that Atlas can do anything, but you may be able to sway his opinion."

Qrow gave it a moment of consideration. "Eh, might as well. After that, though, we go track down your sister and her team."

Winter acquiesced with a nod, standing from her seat and grabbing her coat. "I suppose we should get started."

* * *

Torchwick stared his guard in the eyes, watching his every movement.

The guard made no impression of awkwardness, no sign of discomfort. Atlas had finally wizened up, it seemed. The last one had began stammering and stuttering, and the one before that had actually opened the cell door and tried to pick a fight.

That had almost been too funny. 'Elite soldiers' his ass. More like kingdom-sponsored thugs. He'd seen more intimidating school-children. Hell, they were responsible for him getting stuck in here in the first place.

Not like Roman had much to complain about, really. Three square meals, occasional conversations where he had all the time he wanted to make his interrogators look like fools, and a somewhat-comfortable bed. He'd had worse, much worse. He missed his cigars, sure, but it was a small price to pay.

The door to his cell buzzed, and the guard he'd been staring at stepped inside, rifle trained on the master thief.

"Oh, another guest? I do so appreciate the company."

A gruff voice greeted him in reply. "Heh, that's not something I usually hear when I enter somewhere. Heard my niece kicked your ass."

Roman stood. "Your niece? Which one? There are a few little brats roaming Vale nowadays."

Qrow laughed. "True, I guess you would be confused, considering how many 'little brats' have kicked your ass in the past few months."

Roman swore internally. He'd walked himself into that one, and from the look on his interrogator's face, the man knew it.

Another figure stepped in behind him, one that Roman recognized. "The illustrious Ice Queen herself greets me in person? What is today, did something happen?"

"Would you like to know something interesting, Torchwick?" Winter asked, throwing Roman for a loop. Normally the woman would've taken the bait.

"Oh, and just what would that be?"

Qrow was the one to answer. "Vale's council is the only thing stopping Atlas from subjecting you to some more, let's say, 'enhanced' forms of interrogation, something you seem to be pretty happy pointing out."

Roman remained silent.

"See, thing is, I'm not here on Atlas authority, and neither am I here on Vale's authority. Name's Qrow Branwen. You and I, we're going to have a long chat, and you're going to learn that Atlas considers some of my methods barbaric. Perks of growing up in the Branwen tribe, but I bet you already knew that."

Roman paled.

* * *

Pyrrha was only somewhat nervous to be standing in the headmaster's office. She hadn't done anything wrong, at least, not to her knowledge.

Right?

"Apologies for the wait, Ms Nikos, General Ironwood should be here within moments."

It was so perfectly timed, the moment the headmaster finished his sentence was the moment the elevator doors dinged open, and out stepped both Ironwood and Goodwitch.

"Apologies for my tardiness, Ozpin. I was assisting Winter and Qrow with a request. Ms Nikos, a pleasure to see you."

Pyrrha, in a mild amount of shock at being addressed, simply nodded a greeting, somewhat unable to trust herself to form a polite, coherent sentence.

"I imagine you are wondering exactly what it is that we've called you here this afternoon to speak about, Ms Nikos."

Finally, something Pyrrha trusted her own voice to answer. "Yes, sir. I had been wondering."

Ozpin nodded, a genial smile on his face. "If you were not, I'd imagine we'd called you here for the wrong reason."

That caught Pyrrha off-guard.

"I understand that you are nearly completely aware of everything Mr Arc knows about his semblance?"

Pyrrha nodded. "He did tell both myself, the rest of AWBN and all of RRYN about his semblance."

Ozpin hummed acknowledgement. "Then you are aware of what he calls magic?"

Pyrrha glanced between Ozpin, Goodwitch and Ironwood. "Yes? Some of his skills use Mana, if I remember correctly, and he calls those spells. I guess they'd be classified as magic."

"Yes. His semblance is a little more than just a semblance, as I believe we all suspect, but would you believe me if I told you that there is more magic in the world than just Mr Arc?"

Pyrrha thought for a moment before replying. "I would have to, I suppose. I've already seen evidence of it, so to hear that Jaune is not the only one would not come as the greatest surprise."

"Hmm. When I say magic, I don't quite mean the kind of magic Mr Arc has access to. His is, well, an entirely different class of magic. His is more… foreign. Perhaps I'd best start from the beginning, and go from there. Tell me, do you have a favorite fairy tale?"

* * *

"Woah…"

"Woah…"

Ruby and Yang were practically echoing each other, staring at a display stand that held what Jaune could only really call an amalgamation of a motorcycle and a scrapheap.

Blake was standing next to the two, having noticed the plaque. "The Spitfire, a vehicle designed for complete modularity. Easily turn from a sleek two-wheeler to a rugged four-wheeler, using a deep integrated system of advanced Storage Tech and our own custom-designed modular locking systems."

Jaune had to admit, it was pretty cool. Yang was salivating over it from a vehicular standpoint, and Ruby was salivating over it from a mechanical standpoint, but Jaune had the ability to look at it from both points of view.

Until he saw the price-tag.

"Holy crap, that's seventy-thousand Lien!"

His exclamation was enough to snap Ruby and Yang away from it, one in shock, the other disappointment.

"Damn. Bumblebee was only like, twenty-thou," Yang remarked. "And that was after all the modifications and stuff I bought for her."

"I guess you pay premium for the 'modularity', whatever that'd come in handy for," Blake pointed out, as they rejoined the rest of the group in the large shopping strip they'd been wandering around in. "Though I can't say I really see the need for it. Anyone who could afford that could afford an armored car."

Ruby answered her. "The modular stuff is actually pretty easy to replicate. It's just a series of joints and magnets. You can probably get a whole array of different parts for it, like an anti-personnel turret, or fit it out for rough terrain."

Yang nodded. "Yeah, it's a specialty vehicle. The rich Hunters buy 'em, and then rarely use them. I'd say they're pretty much only useful in urban areas, and how many urban areas are there that you need a friggin' tank for?"

"Atlas, to be fair. I've seen a fair few of those around the Academy," Weiss said, emerging from a rather expensive boutique. "They're usually bought for the rich students. You won't find a Hunter willing to ride one unless they've stumbled across a lot of wealth, and feel like treating themselves."

Jaune laughed. "Is it bad that I kind of want to buy one?"

Weiss rolled her eyes. "My point exactly. You've definitely stumbled across wealth, that's for sure."

"True, but that thing'd put me in the hole faster than you can say 'broke'. I kinda need my Lien for supplies."

"Ooh, Jaune, that reminds me! We should go pick up a bunch of supplies, so we can start training your crafting!" Ruby exclaimed, the excitement palpable.

"It's at the top of my to-do list, don't worry. I figured I'd start by making some metals from ore, that seems like a good idea."

"There's a place that sells that sort of thing wholesale on the outskirts of town, so it's probably best if we save that for last."

Jaune looked to Ruby with a sly smirk. "You just want to get ice cream now, don't you."

Ruby decided to copy one of Jaune's mannerisms, scratching at the back of her head, somewhat abashed that Jaune had seen straight through her. "Kinda?"

"Oh my gods you two are too adorable," Yang let out.

Ruby rounded on her sister in an instant, leaping with a snarl that seemed like it achieved a world record for 'least intimidating snarl ever'.

Ren, ever the bringer of peace, pointed towards a small store not too far from where they were standing. "That's a nice little place over there, if we want to head inside."

Jaune quickly snagged the back of Ruby's hood and hoisted her off her laughing sister. "Come on, you two."

Nora was already bouncing at the door, waiting as patiently as Nora could ever truly be, excited at the prospect of sugary treats. It wasn't pancakes, of course, the indisputable king of breakfast, but it was almost as good.

They all entered, and soon were digging into a wide assortment of frozen goodies.

* * *

"I… I don't understand, Headmaster."

"I was afraid you wouldn't. Tell me, what is it you do not understand?"

Pyrrha couldn't very well say all of it. Strictly speaking, she did understand.

Underneath Beacon was a massive vault, in which only one thing was stored, a comatose woman who possessed magical powers that could be passed on only when the current holder died, and would only be passed on to women, either by being the last thought of the recently deceased, or at complete random should the last thought be of something else.

Also, Ozpin wanted to give her the power of what he was calling the Fall Maiden, because the current holder was incapacitated, with no hope of recovery.

Due to the fact that she was attacked and drained of a part of the power.

She understood all of those words individually. It was combining them all together that it became a little harder to swallow.

Oh, the last thing was that she wasn't allowed to speak of this to anyone else. That part made the least amount of sense.

"Why can I not speak to Jaune about this?" Pyrrha asked, finally settling on a question.

Ozpin shook his head sadly. "Like it or not, Ms Nikos, Jaune presents a very significant danger to the existence of the Maidens. If he were to come into contact with Amber, it could very well shatter the cycle, and we do not know the wrath that could wreak upon Remnant."

Pyrrha had to note that Ozpin hadn't actually explained anything about that. He'd pretty much just reiterated what he'd already told her.

"And we can't tell Jaune not to go see Amber, but inform him of everything else? As far as I know, he's the expert in magic."

Another shake of the head. "Mr Arc's magic is, as I've said, completely foreign. It would not translate, nor would it help. And, unfortunately, the risk is too great."

Pyrrha nodded, accepting the answer for what it was, even if the older man refused to explain any further. She had no real reason to distrust her Headmaster regardless, and the man seemed to truly care about not only Amber, but herself as well.

She moved onto her next question instead. "Headmaster, why me? What have I done that makes me so… eligible, in your eyes?"

She spoke carefully, picking and choosing each word with delicate deliberation.

Ozpin allowed himself to smile at her. "You are one of, if not the most, capable female students Beacon has had in a number of years. Not only are you and your team most likely the strongest, most capable team in Beacon right now, you and Mr Arc are probably the strongest individual students, closely followed by Ms Xiao Long, in fact. And seeing as Mr Arc is indisputably male and also already in possession of his own brand of magic, this responsibility falls to you."

Pyrrha frowned slightly. "And why not Yang? If Jaune can't come into contact with it, for whatever reason, why give it to his partner?"

"A good point, one that Professor Goodwitch brought up," Ozpin began. "The reason is that we believe Ms Xiao Long to be somewhat more… flighty, than you. She is powerful in her own right, but somewhat less of a believer in structured responsibility. Giving her a power of such… capability… may very well backfire on us."

Pyrrha rounded on the headmaster in an instant. "You think Yang would, what, betray you?!"

Ozpin seemed surprised that she'd fired back with such haste. "No, Ms Nikos, I said nothing of the sort. I merely mean that Ms Xiao Long is not the kind of person to act with an incredible amount of patience. I am not exaggerating or embellishing when I say she has a habit of acting somewhat… rashly."

That Pyrrha couldn't deny. It was pretty much Yang's whole semblance, and the blonde had admitted as much in their many training sessions together. Her father and uncle had apparently called the semblance the 'temper-tantrum', and Pyrrha wasn't at all ashamed to admit she had laughed at that.

Ozpin was still going, though. "Keep in mind, Ms Nikos, it is not the Maiden power that cannot come into contact with Mr Arc, but Amber herself coming into contact with Mr Arc's semblance. The combination of magics would only prove to be dangerous in proximity when the Maiden power is damaged in any way. Placing it within you would alleviate that issue completely."

So Pyrrha decided to move onto the most important question, and one she was mildly ashamed to not have thought of before. "If I agree, what happens to Amber?"

Ozpin stalled for a moment, deep in thought. "I.. We… We don't know. The best case scenario is that Amber wakes up from her coma. Worst case… she does not."

Pyrrha took a step back. "I… If it's alright with you, Headmaster, I need some time to think about this."

Ozpin placed his now empty mug upon his desk. "Of course, Ms Nikos. Take all the time you need but… please, think quickly."

It took all of her self-control not to sprint out of that office.

* * *

Jaune didn't know why he hadn't expected to be able to purchase any amount of ore from a store that sold it. It was strange, honestly, that he hadn't expected the essence of capitalism to have stretched to every nook and cranny of the global market.

Now, he was somewhat more laden with materials for his crafting, two inventory slots taken up by twenty-five copper ore, and twenty-five tin ore, which, according to his crafting menu, he could process into ingots at his forge.

He wasn't entirely sure how accurate that was, but then again, his semblance liked to play liberal with reality on a daily basis, so what more was this?

Nothing particularly ground-breaking, to say the least.

And to think, all the ore had only cost him 3550 Lien in total. He'd managed to whittle it down from 5000 thanks to the combination of his Charisma and the Salesman perk, and now, his mind was elsewhere.

Pyrrha had never caught up, but she had sent him a message, basically saying not to wait for her, as she had some stuff to do back at Beacon.

He hadn't thought much of it at the time, accepting it without further consideration, but now, back at the Arcave, it wouldn't stop plaguing his mind.

She was fine, physically, at least, he'd seen her when the group had returned from their shopping trip, but she'd seemed distracted.

He'd ask her after his little crafting trip this afternoon. His partner not only needed to be in the right mindset for their doubles match, but she was also his friend. If something was wrong, he'd make sure to help fix it.

Jaune took the stairs one at a time, entering the workshop basement, pushing some of his hair out of his face as he did so. It'd gotten pretty long lately, and even shaggier, if that were a possibility.

Ruby had shown him how to operate many of the tools and workstations, and Jaune quickly set about heating the forge, getting it ready for his first attempt at processing ore.

He took one of the chunks of copper ore from his inventory and placed it inside the forge, and watched as, before his eyes, it seemed to simply mould itself into a bar shape, smoothening out, and turning a deep orange color.

He grabbed the tongs from the hook next to the forge and grabbed the newly created metal bar, dunking it into the barrel of water next to him, surprised to find that he found the sound of hissing metal cooling rather satisfying.

 **[Copper Ingot Created! +100 XP!]**

The ding echoed out once the bar had finished hissing, and he withdrew it from the water, dropping it straight into a new slot in his inventory, already grabbing the next chunk of ore.

He repeated the process and received an identical notification, followed by a new one.

 **[** _ **Crafting**_ **has reached level 5! You can now craft Bronze Ingots and components!]**

Well, that was nice. Forethought was useful, after all, and having gotten a bunch of tin ore along with the copper had turned out to be a good choice.

It took him twelve more copper ingots before he was level 6, with each ingot being worth 125XP, thanks to his increased level.

No new unlocks at level 6, unfortunately, but he'd keep going until he was out of materials.

The rest of his copper and seven tin got him to level 7, and the rest of his tin got him close to level 8.

Now, the final stretch. Jaune placed a single ingot of tin and a single ingot of copper into the forge, and waited.

With breath abated, Jaune watched as the two ingots seemed to simply congeal together, the orange ingot and the pale metallic blue ingot becoming a darker, duller bronze-colored ingot of, well, bronze.

It only took three bronze ingots to get him to level 8, and from there it was only onwards and upwards as fifteen bronze ingots got him from 8 to 9, and his remaining seven ingots worth took him to a third of the way through level 9.

And it had taken nearly a half-hour to do so.

Now, though, he had twenty-five ingots of bronze to do something with.

As to what he could do, he wasn't entirely sure.

According to his semblance, a single bronze ingot was worth around 275 Lien, which was more than double what the ingredient cost was, so he could make a lot of money, but that wouldn't exactly be XP-efficient. Not that he had to be, but he felt like Lien was a lesser priority.

Armor, maybe?

He'd been in need of a new set for some time, ever since his rather fateful experience with that King Taijitu, so why not make some?

Then again, bronze wasn't exactly known for its incredible strength against Grimm. It was really just a stopgap for civilians, to give them a slight chance. It would be almost negligible on him, at least, until he got some materials that were a little stronger.

Even his cheap steel platemail he'd had was better protection.

Jaune decided he'd just keep the bronze, for now. Maybe later he'd come across something that would need it, maybe he wouldn't. It was too much too soon, and he didn't quite know what to do with it.

Maybe he'd ask Ruby.

Five minutes later, after Jaune had shut off the forge, and stepped out of the Arcave, he realised his crucial mistake.

He'd forgotten to equip his Designer title.

Son of a bitch.

* * *

 **Yes, okay, I was too lazy to recalculate everything with the Designer title equipped. Oh well, it serves as a good ending for the chapter, so I reckon it was worth it.**

 **I'll just dive right into review so we can ignore my mistake.**

 **Shadow of God: I've noticed this a couple times, and I guess that's what happens when I don't make it a significant deal, but Cinder isn't a part of a Hunter team, as I tried to make blatantly obvious at the start of the chapter. :P**

 **armentho: I figured I'd just quickly mention that Systema is now being cross-posted up over on spacebattles, and will soon find its way to AO3 once I figure out the html, like I tried a number of months ago. Good god that was a long time ago.**

 **CorEagle: I really need to play some of the Final Fantasy games. There's a wealth of stuff in them, or so I've heard, and maybe I'll take the plunge one of these days.**

 **typhonyx: It's moreso the armor lock than any kind of intangibility. However, you are effectively sealed in place, and unable to be moved, except in a few extenuating circumstances.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: To be fair, I have some pretty long hiatus's on active projects. Like Never A Hero, which hasn't been updated since November. Still working on that in my off-time, too. As for your question, there is no title for damage resistance, nor one he would gain from such a torturous experience, but I may add one at some point. Something like 'Unfaltering' or 'Everlasting', I imagine.**

 **bigredbox13: No better time to start then now!**

 **Deans1000: Auto-loot was an idea I had around a month or two before it was implemented, to be fair, and I've never really written romance before, so trying to write a harem would be... difficult at best, and plain awful at worst. Glad you like it though!**

 **jedimasterb10: Funnily enough, the inspiration for Stasis comes almost directly from the move in XCOM 2, with the Advent Priests. Those cheeky bastards always cause me problems. Especially when I've modded the game so heavily it's almost unrecognizable.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Glad to be back! I've actually had a big-cat kind of summon in mind for a while, but I never really put it in the spreadsheet until now. Most likely going to see it in Mistral if we get to it, unless I decide I want to make it appear earlier because I can't resist.**

 **Fake Account dammit: The skill does list the cost, so it is a per-cast cost rather than a steady-cast cost, and the time varies, so I can't necessarily inform without over-informing, if that makes sense. On average, though, it's roughly five seconds. Though that's subject to change.**

 **And that about does it for reviews this week, thank you all for stopping by! I have a twitter: fat_flying and a Pa Treon: AFatFlyingWhale if you want to contact/support me, I'd really appreciate it!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	49. New Companions

**Lots of stuff happening in this chapter, both System-related and otherwise. Starting to push a little more into mid-game, now, at least, so far for a lot of the stuff I have developed so far. Then again, immediately after writing a lot of it I added a bunch more specifics to the System, so who knows. I certainly don't.**

* * *

Jaune rolled the Regular Soul Orb down the length of his arm until it reached his hand, where a quick flick of his wrist sent it skyward, arcing down into his other, awaiting hand, beginning it's path once again along his other arm, where it reached his shoulders.

A quick twist had it roll across his shoulder-blades and reach his other arm, continuing down until it once again reached his hand.

It continued in this loop a number of times as Jaune distracted himself, absent-mindedly training his _Sleight of Hand_ skill.

His mind was not focused on the physical actions he was taking with the Soul Orb, and more on the implications of what he had at his proverbial and literal fingertips.

Jaune had the materials and the Soul Orbs to make a new summon. In fact, he might even be able to make a few new summons. The question was, why?

He supposed that, despite the fact that his Bound Souls showed personality, they were bound to his soul, and therefore not quite animals, so it wasn't like if he created them and then didn't use them he would be mistreating them. That, and logically, they didn't level up through means similar to him, so it wasn't like they were missing out on XP if they didn't come out to fight.

Jaune couldn't really see a reason as to not create more. He had the materials, the Soul Orbs, the motivation, and he couldn't see a negative.

Jaune decided to bite the bullet. It was better to be over-prepared now rather than under-prepared later, or at least, that was his line of thinking.

Next question was, which did he start with?

He had some drops from a King Taijitu, a Deathstalker, and a bunch from some Boarbatusks he'd killed, some time ago, too. Some of these had been in his inventory for months. Hell, he was pretty sure the Elder Deathstalker Chitin had been in his inventory since Initiation.

Jaune caught the Soul Orb in hand, quickly clasping it in both.

' _Start from the top and work my way down. I've got no way of knowing what they bring, so might as well.'_

It took him next to no time at all to carve the ritual into the ground in front of him, the clearing providing more than ample space, as it had many times before.

In the center, he placed the required amount of Soul Orbs, two Regular quality ones, and the Elder Taijitu Fang, and took a step back.

The commencement of the ritual was always slightly different, and the result was too, though that was more expected.

The glow began to get brighter, and brighter still, until it was blinding, surrounding Jaune in a pale, white light, and Jaune could feel something wrap around his arm, sliding up to his shoulder.

And, as suddenly as it began, it ceased, a snake of gold and white patterned scales coiled around his arm.

"Hello there," Jaune remarked, as the snake stuck its forked tongue out in response. "I guess you need a name, huh?"

The snake gave a slight hiss as its only response, and Jaune nodded to himself. He thought about it for a moment, and instinct directed him to a name, his mind unable to pull itself away.

"Ouroboros. Like it?"

The snake curled itself further up Jaune's arm, settling down its head on his other shoulder.

"Sorry to have to dismiss you soon, but I'm pretty sure the others would like to meet you. If they can. I actually don't know where you go when you're dismissed. Wow, that sounds morbid."

Ouroboros tasted the air, nonchalant.

"Like, it kind of sounds like death. Cause, I don't know what happens when you die, either, and so there's a kind of similarity, except I can bring you back. And Cadejo can bring himself out whenever he feels like it, but I think that's because he's mischievous. Alcmena and Callisto don't seem to care that much."

Ouroboros continued to stare.

"I'll, uh… just dismiss you now."

Like flicking a mental switch, Jaune watched as Ouroboros faded away into smoke, quickly evaporating into the air.

Before he moved onto the next ritual, he checked his notifications, noting a new perk.

 **[You've unlocked a new Perk!]**

 **[Basilisk's Glare:** _Your connection with the soul of a King Taijitu allows you to have a chance to freeze targets in place for a moment, so long as they make eye contact, and you will it._ **]**

That held a few interesting little uses. Succeeding in freezing someone right before landing an attack would be devastating.

The ritual sigil, still worn, would work again, so it saved Jaune from having to recarve it, though considering his current expertise with _Terrakinesis_ , it wouldn't even be a particularly difficult thing to do. Instead, he reached into his inventory, taking the only piece of Deathstalker he possessed out, and placing it down.

With it he placed a staggering 10 Regular Soul Orbs, balancing them evenly in what could be approximately called a circle, and took a step back.

Much like the last time, the ritual circle began to glow, getting brighter and brighter, until the light began to coalesce, forming what looked almost like a small-cat-sized scorpion.

Black, iridescent chitin and two golden arcs etched into the back, the scorpion quickly scuttled along the ground, climbing up Jaune's leg, crossing his body, and settling into a firm grip on his left armwrap.

Jaune suppressed a shiver that never came, despite feeling like the scorpion would make him uncomfortable. Perhaps it was the soul connection he shared with the Bound Soul that made him at ease with it on him.

 **[You've unlocked a new Perk!]**

 **[Chitinskin:** _Your connection with the soul of a Deathstalker gives you a kind of chitinous dermal layer, giving a small amount of physical protection._ **]**

Jaune couldn't feel it, but it was there. Apparently.

He decided to stop poking himself in the chest and instead give his new companion a name, much like he had for Ouroboros.

And, much like before, the name sprung forth from the font of knowledge that was his mind.

"Ishara," Jaune let out, almost like an exhalation. The sensation of tiny pinpricks could be felt through the fabric he wore on his arms, and Ishara clambered around to face him, already beginning to disappear.

He watched as Ishara evaporated completely, the feeling of the scorpion vanishing almost distracting.

He reached into his inventory and grabbed the final two objects he needed to finish his summoning spree, at least, thus far.

A Boarbatusk Tusk and his only Greater Soul Orb as of that moment found themselves placed within the worn, scorched ritual circle, and Jaune, once more, took a step back.

He waited, breath abated, as, once again, the circle began to glow.

Brighter. Brighter still.

Then nothing aside from the standing form of a black boar, gleaming white tusks doing nothing to detract attention from the etched golden hair in the shape of twin crescents, the Arc insignia.

Jaune knelt down onto one knee, arm outstretched as the boar snuffled into his open hand.

Another name sprung forth, from somewhere in the deep recesses of his subconscious. "Hey, Freyja. What've you brought to the table?"

Freyja brought another snuffle, and a notification.

 **[You've unlocked a new Perk!]**

 **[Tracker's Instinct:** _Your connection with the soul of a Boarbatusk unlocks the Tracking skill for use._ **]**

 **[You've unlocked a new Skill!]**

 **[** _ **Tracking (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are capable of tracking, using all sorts of means to track a potential target, like following footprints, trampled undergrowth and other similar means._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

Jaune gave Freyja a head-scratch, urging the snuffling boar into whatever alternate dimension or wherever it was his summons went when he dismissed them.

Was it inside his head?

It didn't matter all that much, to be fair.

With what amounted to an afterthought, Jaune constructed a chair beneath him with _Terrakinesis_ as he sat, eyes browsing his listed inventory items.

Most of them weren't of any particular interest as of yet, some things he was planning on selling, some he would keep until he saw a use for them, and a few other miscellaneous things.

As he browsed, he set about creating a replacement Greater Soul Orb, realizing that the cost of which was significantly more Ambient Soul than any of the other orbs he'd been able to create thus far, and considering he hadn't noticed last time, he had to accept the conclusion that more densely populated areas had higher Ambient Soul.

"Grade IV Lightning Dust, Alpha Beowolf Spines, Iron Ore…" Jaune trailed off, eyes drawn away to something else.

"Grade III Metal Dust…"

Jaune shot up out of his makeshift earthen chair, already pulling the sharp crystal out of his inventory and placing it on the somewhat-damaged ritual circle, an idea forming.

Alongside it he placed what he knew the ritual would require, depositing a Minor Soul Orb next to the crystal as he shook the blood from his finger, having accidentally cut it open on the Dust.

It had healed before he'd noticed, but that didn't stop the residue of blood left over on his finger from being, well, left over. He continued to ignore it, though, and stepped back, hoping that it would work.

Work was exactly what it did. The crystal began to vibrate and shine, increasing in intensity as he took another pace backwards.

Jaune watched in awe as Platinus, the Metal Elemental formed in front of him, sharpened crystals clinking and grinding as they formed the metallic, humanoid figure.

 **[You've gained a new summon!]**

 **[Platinus]**

 **[Metal Elemental]**

 **[Shard]**

 **[** _ **Harden (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, your Metal Elemental is capable of hardening to a point where it is effectively impenetrable._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

 **[A title has ranked up!]**

 **[Soul Tamer Adept is now Soul Tamer Expert!]**

 **[8/16 Souls Bound to next Rank.]**

Jaune had to physically shut his jaw with his hand under the onslaught of awesome that was Platinus.

To be fair, all his summons were pretty cool, but Platinus just… shone. It's metallic sheen refracted light in that metallic kind of way, the one that always looked really, really cool in movies. Those movies, with the blade that always seems to shine in the light, that glint that makes it look all the more intimidating.

That kind of sheen.

Platinus was currently kneeling in the dirt, and Jaune mentally bid it to rise, to which it followed the instruction with ease, which came as no surprise to Jaune. If it had struggled, well, Jaune would be more than a little concerned.

Now that Jaune thought about it, however, mind still lingering on the shine Platinus gave off, the metal it was made of was almost impossibly familiar.

Jaune looked to his own blade, drawing it out of its sheath, and inspecting it closely.

Had he ever _Observed_ Crocea Mors before? He couldn't remember if he had or not, and considering there was quite literally no downside to doing so, he decided to.

 **[Crocea Mors (Longsword)]**

 **[Primary Weapon]**

 **[A simple blade, bearing minor scratches. The blade has never dulled, however, and it feels like there is something... more. The blade appears to be made out of a high-quality Dust Alloy of some kind.]**

A few parts of that little description caught his eye, but he realised that his minimal hypothesis was onto something. If Crocea Mors blade was made of some kind of Dust Alloy, and Platinus's Metal Dust looked familiar, well, two plus two did tend to equal four…

Of course, as with all things that involved Jaune, he found himself on a tangent without end.

"Something more?" He asked aloud, as if the nature that surrounded him would be enough to answer.

It was not, though that was not any kind of surprise.

What was a surprise was the shock of a notification, another one, popping up, and making him jump.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[** _ **Family Heirlooms**_ **]**

 **[Discover the secret behind Crocea Mors.]**

 **[?]**

That… didn't exactly give a whole lot of information. Man, what he'd give for a walkthrough.

"Something to keep in mind, I guess," Jaune remarked, sheathing the blade. A quick nod to Platinus had the elemental crumble into nothingness, dismissed, and soon Jaune turned about-face, heading towards the staircase that would take him back up to Beacon.

Already the early-morning sun had risen above the horizon, and birds were chirping their morning calls.

All in all, it had the building blocks to be a peaceful day on Remnant.

Almost a shame it was going to be filled with over-the-top announcing of the world's biggest combat tournament's second round of fights.

Almost.

* * *

"Jaune, over here! We saved you a seat!"

Jaune was quick to locate Yang's voice, gently shoving past a few people to take the proffered seat. "Thanks. Didn't realize it had gotten so late."

"What were you doing, Jaune-Jaune? Messing around with lightning again?" Nora asked, leaning over Yang to peer at Jaune, a conspiratory expression on her face.

Jaune let out a laugh, but shook his head. "Nothing that dangerous this morning. Just rounding off a few things, checking off stuff from the ever-growing to-do list."

Yang let out an exaggerated shrug. "Can't say I envy all that organizing stuff. I figure I had your semblance, I'd just wing it, see where it takes me."

"Yeah, and Weiss would spend all her time organizing and not actually progressing, and Ruby would focus completely on _Crafting_ , and Nora would immediately focus on making the biggest explosion she could, and Blake and Pyrrha… would do something smart, probably."

Blake, sitting behind him, raised an eyebrow. "At least you've grasped my personality somewhat."

Weiss, however, seemed unamused, sat next to her partner. "For your information, Arc, I'd be more likely to experiment much in the same way as you, though not quite as radical nor as self-endangering."

Jaune had to accept that point. "I did get hurt quite a bit in the beginning. That wasn't as fun as it sounds."

Seven of their typical eight watched in amusement as Ruby practically evicted the chair next to Jaune, taking it as her seat. "Pretty sure we all got a little bruised up when we first discovered our semblances. I definitely hit a lot of trees. Turns out the go-fast part is the easy part. Stopping is the hard part."

Jaune laughed, the mental image of Ruby running full-pelt into a tree too comical not to laugh at.

Her pout did nothing to prevent him from continuing, but he regained control quickly. "I mean, I get that, but if it wasn't for the whole regeneration thing, I'd be a cripple ten times over by now. Remember that time I literally jumped inside a King Taijitu?"

The assembled group nodded, and Ruby blushed hard. "A little too well…" She murmured under her breath, Blake choking on air as she accidentally overheard.

"Yeah, turns out King Taijitu have strong acidic saliva. That stuff burns. Really badly. Not just clothes, which was awkward, and armor, which was annoying, but skin and flesh, which really, really hurts. Don't do it, just a recommendation."

"Pretty sure any of us could've told you that, idiot," Yang remarked.

"I resent that."

Ren, ever the voice of reason, spoke up. "I believe they're about to announce the first match-up. Perhaps we should pay attention?"

Almost as if on cue, Oobleck's voice began to blare out through the stadium's speakers.

"Welcome back ladies and gentlemen, to the second day of the 40th Vytal Tournament! Today we're pleased to be back announcing the doubles rounds, and Peter Port and I will begin by calling out our first round!"

"Ho ho! Today is bound to be an exciting series of matches as we dive right in! But, before we announce who will be fighting who, let's remind our audience of which teams are still in the competition!"

"Right you are! After a gruelling set of matches yesterday, we're left with eight teams to compete for their spots in the third round! We have Team AWBN, Team CFVY, Team COPR, Team CRDL, Team EMBR, Team FNKI, Team RRYN and Team SSSN! Now, Peter, if you would be so kind as to announce our first matchup today!"

Port nodded, a beaming smile underneath his bushy moustache, as he pressed a button on the desk in front of him.

The holographic projection began to spin, humming as it sped up, only to slow down on two names.

"Team RRYN vs Team FNKI! Our contenders had best get ready for a tough fight!"

"It's us!" Nora cheered, bounding up and out of her seat, grabbing Yang by the wrist and effectively yanking her out of her chair.

"Woah, easy! I don't wanna be out of Aura before I make it down there!" Yang exclaimed, managing to free her arm from her teammates grasp. "Anyone watch them before, anything we can expect from these guys?"

Jaune shrugged. "I caught their match, nothing particularly special. One guy fought with a trumpet, that was… odd. They didn't show anything off, though, so I think they're keeping things close to their chest."

"Good luck sis, good luck partner!" Ruby cheered from her seat. "We're all rooting for you!"

Yang and Nora both bumped fists before making their way out of the stands.

* * *

"Wow! You two look like you pack a punch!"

Yang and Nora shared a glance before returning their gaze to their two opponents.

"Uh, thanks?" Yang replied, a little nonplussed.

"Don't worry about Neon, she's too talkative for her own good. Good luck, I guess."

Both the opponents stood almost directly in competition with each other, one with bright orange hair and a tattoo down the arm, and the other smartly dressed, a stylish hat and sunglasses only adding to the oddity that was the two students from supposedly strict Atlas.

"Yeah! Break your legs!" Nora exclaimed.

Yang looked to her teammate. "Isn't it 'break a leg'?"

Nora's only response was to widen her grin, and Yang found herself unsurprised by the ginger hammer-maiden.

All four competitors began to watch as the wheel began to spin, waiting to see the environments that would be selected.

Desert, then Fire Plains, then Forest, and then, finally, Stormy Mountain.

Yang and Nora shared another glance.

"Oh, hell yeah."

Six people in the stands simultaneously winced.

Flynt Coal and Neon Katt had no idea exactly what was awaiting them in this coming conflict.

* * *

A trumpet was a surprisingly versatile weapon.

That was definitely not at all what Yang had planned on coming to mind as she found herself straining against the Sonic Dust-powered brass instrument that threatened to blow her away, all the while Nora was becoming more and more irate as she struggled to catch up with the roller-skating, nunchuck-wielding, party-hardering Faunus that continued to evade capture.

So far neither team had taken any considerable damage to their Aura, which was frustrating, and nor did it look like they were getting close to a ring-out.

This was dragging on, and it wasn't just the audience that was getting bored.

So Yang allowed herself to get angry.

Lilac flickered to crimson, and she leapt, discharging shotgun shells behind her over and over again until she reached Flynt, fist cocked.

It never connected as the force of the trumpet quadrupled, as did the sound.

"Oh, looks like Mr Coal has used his semblance, Killer Quartet!" Oobleck announced, all the while Yang found herself impacting against a tree, cracking the log behind her back.

"Nora! We gotta do something about this guy!" She shouted, grimacing as the sound blotted out her voice, already cacophonous.

Yang was effectively alone, unable to call for backup.

She allowed herself to get angrier.

"I'm not about to back down to some two-bit trumpet-playing asshole who doesn't even sound good!" Yang shouted at the top of her lungs. Sure, it wasn't her greatest comeback, but this was about to be.

Two movements had her gain ground on the quartet. The first, an incendiary shell igniting a patch of Fire Dust near where the purple Flynt stood, knocking him and the other three off balance.

The second movement had Yang replicate her prior motions, though this time, powered by pure rage, excess semblance damage, and raw, unadulterated spite for bad jazz, Yang connected.

And clamped her hands down on the end of the trumpet, effectively sealing it shut.

Suddenly, there was really only one way for the sound to go, and Flynt, congealed into the singular form, found himself flipping head over heels backwards, only to have Yang's fist connect with his midsection mid-air, and launch him straight into the arena barrier, with a groan.

On the other side of the arena, Nora's hammer missed again. Nora shouted in frustration, and despite her shout containing absolutely no understandable syllables, Neon let out a laugh.

"Hey, you're kinda pretty when you're angry! Maybe you should stop missing and try to hit me?"

This time, Nora's voice carried perfectly understandable words, ones that made Neon pale somewhat.

"Uh… sorry? No need to get so flustered."

Nora fired a grenade, which was easily dodged by the mobile Faunus. "Are you even trying?"

Nora relaxed, holding Magnhild in one hand. "Okay, colors. You want me to hit you?"

Neon skidded to a stop, taking the opportunity to leer at her opponent. "I want you to try, at least!"

Nora lifted her hammer above her head, and stepped backwards a single pace.

"Pfft. You're gonna get yourself struck by lightning, shortstack! Good try, I can see why you'd give up!"

Nora's smile widened until it was almost frantic.

Neon lost her smile as Nora was struck by all one billion volts of a single strike of lightning, and instead of keeling over, met her eyes.

"Neat trick! Gonna need more than some sparks to take me down!"

Nora twirled Magnhild delicately, uncaring of the weight of the weapon. "And people say I don't stop talking. Shut up."

With that, the match ended.

Or, at least, Neon found her chest met with the blunt end of a hammer, and felt at least one rib crack as her entire Aura shattered underneath the power of the strike that drove her half a meter into the hill behind her.

Then the match ended.

* * *

"Damn," Jaune remarked, staring somewhat wide-eyed at the end of the match.

"Yeah…" Ruby echoed, as starstruck as Jaune felt.

"I know CRDL aren't strong, but Penny just took Cardin and Russel out in like, one hit."

"That… yeah. She just kinda hit them with a rock. And I thought Yang and Nora knew how to hurt their opponents."

Jaune shrugged. "To be fair, I don't think Neon will be getting out of the infirmary for at least a day."

Ruby winced. "There's a reason why we keep Ren near her at all times. Less collateral damage."

Jaune had to admit that was a good idea. He then proceeded to imagine Nora without Ren, and suddenly realised that he would be the second strangest occurrence at Beacon. It was almost like imagining night without day.

"So, lunch?" Ruby asked. "I know you only stuck around with me to catch Penny's match, so everyone's probably already eaten, but we can probably find somewhere!"

Jaune rolled his eyes. "Ruby, I didn't 'stick around'. I really do like spending time with you. Besides, watching Penny fight is always an experience."

Ruby practically glowed. "Yeah, Penny's pretty badass. C'mon, let's go!"

Jaune and Ruby wandered off into the expansive crowds at the 40th Annual Vytal Festival, to enjoy each other's company in the presence of good food and great atmosphere.

* * *

"How are things progressing, Emerald?"

Emerald stood straight-backed and unflinching as Professor Aurum, sat behind her desk, gazed intensely at her student.

"Things are proceeding as planned, Ma'am. Ironwood and Ozpin are on guard from an external attack, and their pet attack dogs are still following the wrong trail. The false lead Roman gave them has taken them out of Vale and to an abandoned staging area."

Cinder Fall nodded, picking up her scroll from her desk. "Some interesting information concerning the General has appeared, and I believe they have picked their maiden candidate. How are Neo and our White Fang plant performing?"

At this, Emerald appeared to slump ever-so-imperceptibly. "Marseille is blending in, and keeping an eye on RRYN. Neo has chosen to remain in our dorm room, though that doesn't come as too much of a surprise. I'm surprised she can stand to be around Mercury, though."

"And of our priority team, AWBN?"

"His summoning semblance is… interesting. He's increased his arsenal, and seems to only be getting stronger with every passing minute. He has a number of weaknesses, though. Mostly in the form of his friends and teammates, but Rose appears to be his biggest."

"The silver-eyed protégé and the secret summoner, hm? Good work, Emerald. Continue watching, we may yet learn something of import. Oh, and send word to Adam. His time is coming, and he'd best be ready."

Emerald nodded. "At once, Ma'am. Thank you."

Cinder waited until Emerald left before allowing herself a smile. "Such gifts, mistress. What a pleasant surprise."

* * *

 **Like I said, lots of stuff. I'm really enjoying this little-not-so-little tournament arc. Working on the behind-the-scenes stuff has also been really relaxing as of late.**

 **Anyways, onto reviews!**

 **commandosquirrel: Partly because the amount of time it would take to recalculate and rewrite everything would have pushed me past my weekly deadline, and partially because sometimes you gotta sacrifice stuff for a good ending. I will be taking the title into account from now on, which is what the Crafting rework had me focus on. The spreadsheet, well, it's interesting to look at, at least for me. I may be pushing a Crafting Calc to the public spreadsheet soon.**

 **csad21: Well, as for question one, the entire Observation failed due to range limitations, so he didn't get any information, and as for question two, I guess you'll just have to wait and see! I'm playing the whole Maidens thing pretty close to the chest, and Ozpin is such an interesting character to try and wrap my head around. Who knows, maybe he's telling the truth? Hope this chapter assuaged your minor question, too.**

 **BanTheFairyKing: 'Course I care! Love all the reviews I get, from the single word to the lengthiest. Glad you liked the beginning, and I hope you continue to enjoy up to this point and further!**

 **IcyStream: Sorry buddy, I don't think a Shai-Hulud summon will be coming any time soon. We got a snake, though, and that's kind of like a worm!**

 **Drakon Hunter: Yeah, I know, it's like 97% copper usually. I just figured, for the sake of game logic and brevity, I'd make it all easy for me to program and manage. If I start getting into actual alloying we reach a point where it's just too complicated for its own good. Seeing as Smithing and Forging are only sub-skills under the Crafting umbrella, it's actually better off this way, where I'm not focusing too hard on one single element of the System, allowing for a little more creative freedom so other people, who aren't as big a fan of Crafting, get to see stuff.**

 **typhonyx: I do feel like I have to address the Maidens and canon in general, just for the sake of a concise story thread, but I can understand where you're coming from. I am messing with the Maidens and canon, and trying to make it less copy-paste from the series, and give it some flair, but I can see why it would be quite dry for those already massively familiar with RWBY. Some people, however, are only just getting into the fandom, and particularly my fic. Odds are Systema is the first RWBY fic someone read at this point, so I have to cover all my bases. Oh, and maybe no diamonds, but I do still need to implement gems and jewelry into Crafting. Who knows?**

 **Exiled Soul Nomad: And yet, Ozpin may yet have a good reason for it, who knows? Really enjoy writing everyone's most mistrusted headmaster, he's fun.**

 **armentho: I'm still a little hesitant to publicly mention the way skills improve at each level, considering it changes so often as I change my mind, cause I'm an indecisive bastard, but I can imagine that the spirit of Observe works along those lines. As for Ferrokinesis and its use in Crafting, that's something I'm still working on. It'll show up sooner or later, though, have no doubt!**

 **razmire: I wouldn't say you're missing anything, just that the details as to how Jaune may or may not be a danger are still unconfirmed to Pyrrha. She doesn't know, Ozpin's not telling, and we're left to try and stick it all together. Or, well, you all are. I know :P**

 **Guest: One extra step there buddy. For clarification for all of you, Romana Torch is the name given to Neo's illusionary disguise that she wears.**

 **PsychoStorys: Glad to have you! Haven't got any plans to stop until I finish, so we're in for the long haul!**

 **Ferdiad: Turns out the XP gains can quite quickly catch up lower-level skills. Any skill used gets all the XP from the encounter, too, so that contributes.**

 **That's it for this week, folks! Friday really snuck up on me this week, thought today was Wednesday in all seriousness. Time flies, and all that.**

 **I have a Pat reon as AFatFlyingWhale if anyone wishes to get access to the full unholy spreadsheet, and I have a Twitter fat_flying if you want to get in contact, or just send me a PM!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	50. Power Tripping

**QUICK EDIT TO FIX A FEW MISTAKES. OOPS!**

* * *

 **Fifty whole chapters, wow. I'm surprisingly proud of having reached this point. Here's to another fifty, knowing me and the progress we've been making.**

 **Thank you to Maxstroid for supporting me this month!**

* * *

"Chin up, Velvs, we'll be fine. It's a tournament, not a week long job in Mistral. What's the worst that can happen?"

Velvet Scarlatina sighed, running one hand down her face. "C'mon, Coco, we both know what happens when you say that sort of stuff! It jinxes you!"

"Whilst I do not believe in curses or jinxes, testing fate is always unwise, Coco," Yatsuhashi continued, running a stone down the end of his blade. "I believe we should treat our foes with the respect they deserve."

"Aw, come on, I'm just kidding. No need to get your ears in a knot, Velvs. Yats and I'll be fine. Promise," Coco remarked, tilting her shades to get a better look at her team. "Right Fox?"

Fox nodded.

"See, Fox says we'll be fine!"

"I'm a little worried, though. That team was merciless in their last match."

Coco watched as Velvet nervously tapped a rhythm on the box strapped to her hip.

"Relax, Bun-bun. We'll kick their asses and look good doing it."

"Yeah, I know. I'm just getting a little worked up, that's all. You know me."

"Come on, Coco. Our match is beginning. Wish us luck," Yatsuhashi spoke, and Fox gave his partner another nod, the solemn giant returning it as he strode out of the locker room.

Coco was quick to follow, but not before Velvet managed to get out one last remark.

"You'd better bloody keep that promise, Coco."

Coco smirked. "Your accent comes out when you're flustered, Bun-bun."

* * *

"And with that, Yatsuhashi is eliminated! What a turn of events!"

Coco's eyes widened. "What? But-"

She never got the opportunity to finish that thought as another took precedence, a flicker of brown and white amongst the greenery.

Coco twisted towards it, finger tense on the trigger. She wasn't scared. That wasn't what she was. She was acting more careful, that was all.

The girl, Emerald, her name was, she was fast. Or was she? She kept moving, vanishing, appearing, she was everywhere, nowhere, all at once. How was this even possible? Some kind of speed Semblance, a teleportation Semblance?

A heel met Coco's face with a resounding smack, driving her backwards onto one knee, the crumpled remains of her now-shattered glasses landing by her feet. "You bitch!"

Coco was quick to get back up, and this time she was less concerned about her surroundings, opening fire.

The rotating cylinder of barrels began to spin, faster and faster, and in less than a second Coco was blasting a stream of bullets out of the end, cutting through grass, shrubbery and even trees without much effort as she began to trace the flickers she saw.

Not once, in the near thousand bullets she fired, did she land a hit, or even see what she was firing at.

And then, in a single moment, everything went black.

* * *

Jaune tapped a beat down the pommel of Crocea Mors, waiting for his partner to be ready.

Something was bothering Pyrrha, that much was clear. She was distracted, somewhat distant and quite obviously unwilling to share what it was.

Jaune wouldn't push, of course. If something was bothering her Jaune had faith she'd come to him or at the very least Yang to talk about it. No sense in making whatever it was harder for her.

Maybe it was the result of their previous round and what had transpired, or maybe it was stress from not having performed on such a large stage in such a long time.

"Ready, Pyrrha?" He asked, as his teammate stepped out.

"Yes, I am," Pyrrha replied, and Jaune found himself lost for words.

"Then, uh, let's get going?"

Pyrrha accepted it as an order, one foot in front of the other as she began to leave, and Jaune was quick to follow, resting one hand against his sheathed blade.

Maybe he should ask if she was alright. Whatever it was, it was bothering her a lot. He'd never seen her so preoccupied with her thoughts.

"You alright, Pyrrha?"

Jaune watched and waited for a response from his biting of the bullet, only to have Pyrrha pause mid-stride, and consider her words very carefully.

"Yes, I'm fine. Just pre-match nerves, I suppose."

"You sure? I just want to make sure you're okay. If you don't want to tell me, that's fine."

Another deep breath and considered thought followed, before Pyrrha once again spoke. "Yes. Thank you for asking, though. We should go."

Jaune nodded. "Right. Don't want to keep the audience waiting, and all that."

It took no time at all to enter the stadium, and Jaune kept his attention on his opponents.

Sun and Neptune looked a little nervous, if just in the face of the two strongest first-years in Beacon. Especially when you considered that they were following up what seemed to be the strongest team from Mistral. Rough odds, on their part, but from the looks of things, they weren't going to let it stop them from trying their hardest.

"No hard feelings, right Jaune?" Sun asked, as the four stopped near the center of the arena.

Jaune allowed himself a smile. "Course not. Don't want you and Neptune to start hating us all of a sudden."

Sun spun his staff into a reverse grip, slinging it over his shoulder. "Oh, you're so on. I'm gonna wipe the floor with you."

Jaune shared a glance with Pyrrha. "Sounds like dibs. Wanna handle Neptune for us?"

Neptune suddenly gulped. "Hey, uh, Sun, wanna swap?"

Sun shook his head with such voracity that Jaune swore it nearly snapped off. "Nuh-uh. No way. Besides, you've got this. Just have faith!"

Their conversation was interrupted as the wheel began to spin, ticking through all the possible environments.

Jaune watched it tick down. Desert, Forest, Geyser Fields… Ocean. Not a bad combo.

"O-ocean?!" Neptune voiced aloud, suddenly even more terrified of the coming fight.

"Oh no. Nep, buddy, just don't freak out. Please," Sun quickly said, trying to console his partner, who looked as if he'd frozen up, as stiff as a board.

"And with that, we begin the final round of the doubles matches! Good luck to our contestants!" Port announced, and the horn sounded.

Neptune was faster than Jaune had ever seen, conquering a sand dune with such speed that even Pyrrha seemed shocked.

Jaune spared him no further attention as Pyrrha moved towards the blue-haired warrior, Jaune drawing Crocea Mors as Sun began to circle him.

"Alright, Jaune. It's just you and me. Blake says you pack a punch, and I've seen some of the stuff you can do, but eh. May the best leader win?"

Jaune shrugged. "I mean, it's not quite just you and me, but yeah. Best leader."

And with that, and a notification popping up that he definitely did not have time to read, Jaune blocked a blow that would have driven him to his knees had his shield not been there to receive it.

Sun really wasn't going to take this lying down, and Jaune was more than happy to oblige.

"You wanna see what I can do with my semblance, Sun?" Jaune asked as he narrowly avoided an overhead strike, spinning sideways.

"Course I do! I've been pretty curious!"

Jaune struck with Crocea Mors, blade meeting staff as Sun blocked it, and Jaune used the time it had bought him to leap backwards.

Sun, thinking he had the advantage, approached, albeit cautiously.

Callisto struck him in the side from out of a cloud of smoke and sent him sliding backwards, feet splashing as they cut a trail through the puddles of water that scattered across the ground.

"What? An Ursa?" Sun exclaimed.

"Is… is that a Grimm?!" Oobleck echoed, standing up in his seat in the commentator's box. "How did that…"

"Oh ho! Mr Arc pulls out one of his tricks, revealing his semblance!" Port interjected to a somewhat uneasy audience. "Mr Arc had the forethought to discuss it with me, so I could help alleviate any undue worries! That, ladies and gentlemen, is Callisto, Jaune's summoned Ursa!"

Callisto reared up on her hind legs, letting loose a roar.

Sun spun his staff once more. "It's just an Ursa. I've killed a lot of them, this shouldn't be any more difficult!"

Jaune smiled once more, pulling a glowing orb from his pocket. "Oh, sure. Of course, Callisto's a little different. About to be a lot different, too."

And with that, he threw the Greater Soul Orb into the air, where Callisto snagged it in her jaws, crunching down on the ball of pure energy.

Sun, and the audience, watched in awe as the large bear began to glow a bright white.

And then, within a moment, it was over, and where Callisto had stood was now a much larger, spikier bear, with far more plates of bone armor across the torso and back, and much more vicious looking claws.

Callisto, now a Greater Ursa Soul, let loose a much louder roar, and began bounding towards Sun.

For a split-second, Sun panicked. A single moment, which passed incredibly quickly before his training kicked in, and he met the bear, staff unfolding to form nunchaku, unleashing bursts of buckshot as he expertly evaded Callisto's sharpened swipes and bites.

Only for Jaune to come in from behind and deliver a crushing _Shield Bash_ that knocked the poor monkey Faunus backwards, stunning him for enough time for Callisto to wrap him in her arms, in the most legitimate form of bear hug.

Jaune's pre-match preparation had come in handy, and with the colossal amount of Ambient Soul in the air from the thousands of people, well, he'd had a good lunch.

Sun struggled against the arms, before going limp, eyes closing.

"Unable to move, Sun?" Jaune asked, before widening his eyes, shield coming up just in time to block a glowing gold nunchaku that nearly knocked him out if he'd been without Aura. Another hit him in the side, and he found himself under attack by two glowing golden Sun clones.

Two more hit Callisto in her sides, causing the bear to have to release the Hunter-in-training, lest take the brunt of the hits. Callisto may have been tough, even tougher now, but that didn't mean she could hold out that long against a constant onslaught.

Jaune slashed one of the clones in half, watching it disperse into golden mist as the second one attacking him seemed to pull back inside Sun's body, and Jaune noted that in doing so the boy restored a good portion of the Aura he'd lost, most likely from creating the copy.

"Seems we've both got some tricks up our sleeves, huh," He allowed himself to remark, staring down the monkey-tailed fellow blond team leader.

"Gotta say, I wasn't expecting yours. That teddy over there knows how to hug."

Jaune let out a laugh. "Teddy would've been a pretty good name for her, to be honest. Though, Callisto's a little more… regal?"

Sun and his two clones readied their weapons once more. "Wanna get back to it?"

Jaune planted the end of Crocea Mors into the water-drenched stone. "First things first. Gotta say hello to the whole family, Sun."

Sun stepped back, wide-eyed, as a cloud of black smoke seemed to waft off of Jaune's shadow, and out of it stepped Cadejo, padded feet sending ripples through the puddles that they stood in.

Following him was Freyja, snuffling at the ground.

Ishara and Ouroboros emerged next, the snake curling around his leg and slithering up to act almost like a scarf, and Ishara crawling up his other leg to rest atop Ouroboros's head.

Finally, soaring into the sky, came Alcmena, the cry of the Stymphalian Soul echoing out over the stadium.

Jaune kept Electrus and Platinus unsummoned. He may have gone a bit overboard already, but there was no sense in continuing that trend. These six were enough.

A quick glance at his inventory told him he had only four more Greater Soul Orbs stored, but that he was fine with. He wanted to evolve all his summons, of course, but if he could only do four, he'd save the orbs, just in case they were needed. Some of his summons weren't exactly combat suitable in their current forms, namely Ishara and Ouroboros, but that didn't mean they were useless. The perks they brought were more than enough to prove that.

Of course, that didn't mean he wasn't going to do a little more showing off. "Alcmena, catch!"

With his exclamation, he threw the second Greater Soul Orb into the air, where the bird pierced it with her beak, beginning the transformation that he knew would draw all the attention.

Jaune shot forwards, blade arcing towards Sun, as the blond found his eyes drawn towards what had once been a small heron-like bird with bronze tips, one he was quite familiar with from his time in Mistral.

Now, however, it was much larger, which made the resemblance all the more similar, and as the slightly-smaller-than-a-Bullhead Alcmena soared over the landscape, Jaune landed his strike against one of the clones that had stepped in front of Sun right before he'd landed the hit.

Sun pulled back fast, his other clone leaping close to the fray, only to suddenly be taken down by four Cadejo's, and Sun soon found himself without any allies, whilst it appeared that Jaune's were only growing.

A bronze-colored feather knocked him off-course, his backpedalling no longer taking him away from Jaune but perpendicular, and Jaune seized the opportunity, lunging forward, only to miss as a hastily created clone detonated in front of him, coating him in dispersing Aura.

Aura that, Jaune noticed, did not go back into Sun, unlike the deaths of his other clones.

He'd dealt a significant blow with just that move, and Sun's hasty reaction. That was good, it meant that this fight would be over even sooner than expected.

Sun was still on the defensive, he'd backed up out of the geysers and into the shallow pool of water that was supposed to represent the ocean, looking around for something, anything, that would help him deal with the summoner that continued his approach, following him into the water.

Then, Sun realised that he had two weapons loaded with buckshot, enough to at least stall for time. Maybe Neptune would defeat Pyrrha in some kind of fluke, and rush over to help him.

Of course, that would actually be two flukes, Sun realised, as not only would Neptune have to beat Mistral's pride and joy in one-on-one combat, but also then spontaneously get over his fear of water.

"Guess there's only one thing to do. Go out fighting."

* * *

Neptune was a frustrating opponent to face, Pyrrha surmised. Not particularly difficult, just frustrating.

It was always the same with these new weapons, ones powered by Energy Dust instead of conventional rounds. She couldn't deflect the rounds, and had to either evade or block the energy, and the very heat of going near them was very slowly sapping her Aura.

To make matters worse, she had no proper traction or even footing to commit to any attacks. The sand, loose and dry, provided no resistance, and any moment she tried to brace, she found herself slipping.

It was unfamiliar terrain, something she was unused to in a tournament context. The Vytal Tournament really was something else.

That being said, Neptune was still yet to land any kind of attack aside from the occasional splash of energy rounds. He was as disadvantaged as Pyrrha, obviously as unfamiliar with the sand as she, but he held the timing advantage, now. Any time she tried to fire upon him he'd already be firing his weapon, and the fact that he did so prevented her from turning the tide and doing the same to him.

They were effectively locked in a stalemate.

That was, until a giant bronze feather nearly gutted Neptune, making the blue-haired teen yelp in surprise.

Pyrrha decided not to react in the same way, instead using it as an opportunity to open fire upon her now open opponent, and Neptune, despite being quick on the draw and using the newly arrived feather as cover, still took a few hits, lowering his Aura by a not so insignificant amount.

Now it was less of a stalemate and more of a game of keeping Neptune behind the cover whilst she tried to figure out the best method of dealing with him.

She had a few options. Continue to fire until she got lucky enough to hit him enough times to break his Aura, try for a flank and hope he didn't notice or relocate, push hard and fast and hope he didn't melt her Aura before she reached him.

Then, as with most good ideas, a good idea sprung into her mind like a dam had burst.

The giant bronze _metal_ feather.

Now all she had to do was make it look like it was sliding because of the sand, and not because she was exerting an immense amount of Semblance-related Aura on it.

A single moment of doubt flickered through her mind as she considered the implications of potentially crushing a fellow Hunter-in-training, but they were quickly quashed by her competitive spirit.

She pushed herself further and further, one hand extended as the other kept her rifle trained on where Neptune was in cover, balancing the forestock on her shield, which she'd planted into the sand, having taken a cue from Jaune and his habit of planting weaponry into the ground.

And she could feel her entire Aura burning as she exerted her control over it. It was searing, rippling black, forcing the feather back further, the metallic edges of the feather bending, the sound of metal groaning as it sheared itself.

Neptune only realized what was happening when the metal began to curve inwards on him.

He tried to run, break free of the ever-enclosing threat of the soon-to-be-cage, but he hesitated, leaping a moment too late as the metal moved faster than ever as Pyrrha let out a shout of exertion, the feather slamming shut into what was effectively a tube, trapping Neptune by his midsection.

"And with that Neptune Vasilias is unable to move, and is eliminated!"

* * *

The sound of the announcement of Neptune's elimination was barely heard by either of the two competitors as they fought against one another, Sun finding himself barely able to find time to quip as he battled against the overwhelming number of foes that he faced, constantly pushing back against Jaune and his summons.

Jaune, for his part, continued to push, slashing away with a wild demeanour, keeping Sun on his toes.

Occasionally a large feather would drive Sun away from making a break for it for a better position, and any time he tried to create a clone either Cadejo or Freyja would disintegrate it, fangs biting down on it or tusks goring it.

He was on the defensive in the worst possible way. He was still taking hits. Every strike that collided with his staff as he blocked felt painful, sending a reverberation down his arms, and he was beginning to feel lethargic, almost as if his Aura was just slowly giving up on its own.

Sun knew from the start that he was going to lose, but this wasn't quite how he imagined it going down.

He'd imagined a tough-yet-well-intentioned standoff that would end in a near draw, one of the two leaders managing to best the other, only to be defeated by the remaining opponent.

But this, this was a meat grinder, and he was the meat.

His Aura was low, now, really low, and one more solid hit was going to put him out of commission.

"C'mon, Jaune! Make it a little fair, and finish me off on your own, huh?"

Jaune shrugged, and Sun watched, barely able to react in time as Callisto struck down on him, knocking his Aura into the red and driving him onto his back with a wheeze.

"Sorry, Sun. No hard feelings."

* * *

Afternoon celebration had turned to evening relaxation, and not only were AWBN and RRYN joined by SSSN, but Penny too, who Ruby had tracked down and invited, which made for a large group that had basically commandeered one of Beacon's courtyards to sit in, not nearly as noisy as they had been minutes earlier as their festivities died down.

"Trade secret semblance, huh. I knew you were hiding something, man," Sun remarked with a laugh.

Jaune couldn't help but laugh. "Not quite. I mean, I've shown it off a few times. I guess the rumour mill just never really picked it up."

Sun waved that off. "Nah, they probably have, I just don't listen to rumours. That's just a Mistral thing, though, learned that the hard way. We don't have many rumours in Vacuo."

Jaune absent-mindedly scratched the top of Cadejo's head, the wolf laid out next to the blond teen, panting in satisfaction.

"Once you get over the shock of them being Grimm-like, they're pretty cool," Sun continued. "Wish my semblance was a little more powerful, kept getting bitten clean through."

"I mean, don't feel bad. I was always going to have a numbers advantage over anyone I fought, you're just probably one of the only people who could actually last that long against an overwhelming force."

"You didn't tell me you got new ones, Jaune!" Ruby piped up as she walked over, Penny trailing behind her, the ginger beaming at the snake she wore around her neck. Ouroboros appeared to be patiently amused by Penny's antics.

"Yeah, that happened early this morning, down by the clearing. Figured I'd get it over and done with, couldn't see a reason not to, you know?"

Ruby sat down next to him, leaning against his arm. "And what you did with Callisto and Alcmena! They're so big now!"

Sun interjected. "Yeah, that was pretty surprising. When the bear got bigger, I went from a little worried to actually worried."

"I'd bring Callisto and Alcmena out, but they're a little too big to have inside Beacon. Plus, with all the Atlesian Knights wandering the place, I'm worried they might identify them as a Grimm and open fire," Jaune replied. "I can get away with Cadejo and Ouroboros, and maybe Ishara, but Callisto, Alcmena and Freyja are pushing it."

Penny passed Ouroboros onto Ruby's shoulders, where the snake coiled itself into the warmth of her hood, head peeking over her shoulder, tongue tasting the air.

"Friend Jaune, your animal companions are very impressive, and so is your fighting style! I was not aware you were so strong last we met!"

Jaune let out a laugh. "I wasn't, to be fair. I've been steadily improving over the months. I wasn't anywhere near this good when I started. Besides, you practically wiped the floor with CRDL this today. I'd say you're pretty strong yourself."

"I do hope it is either your team or Ruby's team that I fight in the third round. I would deeply enjoy the challenge!" Penny said, and Ruby's eyes practically gleamed. "Ooh, I wonder who's going up against who tomorrow!"

"Well, we're putting Pyrrha forward, or so her sponsors have requested. Doesn't really bother me to have to step back, and to be honest, I think I've had enough attention on me as it is. What about you, Ruby? Still sending Yang through?"

Ruby nodded. "Mmhmm! Yang's always itching for a fight, so why not give it to her, you know? Plus she's probably the strongest out of the four of us when it comes to people versus people fights, so it makes sense. The rest of us are more suited for dealing with Grimm most of the time."

"If we had've won today, I'd've been the one getting sent into the singles matches. We didn't though, and to be honest, that's kind of a weight off of my chest. No stress now, we can just chill out and cheer you all on, right Neptune?" Sun stated, looking over to his partner, who was relaxing with his teammates.

His nonverbal response of a single thumbs-up was all the confirmation Sun apparently needed. "He's a little worn out from today. Pyrrha trapped him in a feather."

"I noticed," Jaune remarked with a smile. "I did kind of order Alcmena to help Pyrrha out a little."

"Ooh, that's sly. Nice."

Idle chatter resumed amongst the crowd, before Jaune was struck by an idea.

"Hey, Sun, you're from Haven, what do you know about the last team, what were they called, EMBR?" Jaune asked, and the fellow blond began to think.

"I don't know all that much about them, to be honest. They're pretty secretive, keep to themselves a lot, and they're new. They only arrived at Haven a short while ago, around the same time the Economics Professor arrived. Professor Aurum, I think her name is," Sun answered, before shrugging. "Sorry I can't help any more than that. They're pretty mysterious. Kinda like Blake, but weirder."

Sun then proceeded to wince as Blake overheard him, glaring intensely.

Jaune scratched the underneath of Cadejo's head as he lost himself in thought for a moment. "I don't think there's all that much we can do about it then. Guess we'll just have to figure it out when it comes down to it."

"Pretty sure we're experts at that by now," Ruby remarked. "Especially you."

"Speaking of working things out, I'm gonna duck down to the clearing for the rest of the evening. I've got some stuff I've gotta figure out sooner rather than later. Enjoy the rest of your evening, all."

Jaune stood, Cadejo rolling over and happily barking as Ruby obliged the wolf, rubbing his belly.

"You need them, or can they stay up here for a bit?" Ruby asked, both her and Cadejo giving him the puppy-dog eyes.

It had no real effect on Jaune, but he relented nonetheless. "Sure, Cadejo can stay. I need Ouroboros though."

Ruby nodded, leaning back into the most comfortable position she'd ever laid in, head against Cadejo's back. "Man, I could go to sleep like this."

Jaune laughed as he stretched his arm out, the snake wrapping around the outreaching limb. "I've done it before, he's a comfortable pillow."

"I take it back," Sun piped up. "You're all weird."

* * *

 **Pulling out the proverbial big guns this week, the summoned horde awakens.**

 **Crafting Rework is still in progress, but I've got a few sneak-peek things to mention in regards to it: Armor is almost completely set up, and I have a whole Runecrafting system I've just finished completely working out.** **Other than that, Critical Hits now have a readjusted, corrected chance to trigger, and work for spells as well as weapon attacks. Few other things.**

 **Man, this is practically a changelog. Anyway, onto this week's reviews!**

 **Shadow of God: Adam is definitely a difficult character to write. A lot of people seem to think his entire focus was Blake throughout the entirety of canon, which isn't quite true, and so I'm going to try and work that out. He's still someone that I haven't really written before, though, so it could be a challenge.**

 **armentho: Ishara will be seeing some love next chapter. It was originally going to be at the end of this chapter, but I cut it due to both time constraints and to maintain the overall flow of this chapter.**

 **Dragon lord Syed 101: Well, we'll just have to see what happens with Cinder. Who knows, really?**

 **Drakon Hunter: He hasn't, but that may end up happening. I'm still unsure whether I want any attuned elements to be outside of the main six that I have already, but I'm leaning towards doing it.**

 **dirtrevor: Not so much limiting as much as picking and choosing the ones that are more or less answerable questions that aren't already explained in the next chapter.**

 **typhonyx: Like what I said to Shadow of God, Adam is going to be interesting. You and I seem to share the same opinion of Adam's character, that he's a person focused entirely on control and revenge. It's a good character, and a great challenge to write, so I'm hoping I can push that forward, and have a true antagonist alongside the others I've been workshopping in the background.**

 **AReallyBigGun: Bound Souls have, since the very first introduction, had a full scale evolution system implemented in the background. Whilst I really like the idea of Persona-esq fusion, I feel like, as you stated, the idea doesn't quite mesh with the characters and overall feel of Systema. However, I really do like the idea.**

 **Guest: For the sake of clarification, EMBR has Emerald, Mercury, Neo, and a White Fang agent on it, with close ties to Professor Aurum, Cinder's cover. Marseille is simply a character I've created in order to fill in that blank spot.**

 **BrownTeddyBear: You aren't wrong, and that was intentional. I want to have Elementals, if only just for a more standard RPG style of play, and for the abilities they offer, but the Bound Souls are really about the personalities behind them, however limited, and for the sake of 'even if Jaune is alone, he has someone to talk to', which really helps the story out from a technical standpoint.**

 **jedimasterb10: Damn Gangplank Galleon is a fonky bop. As for Marseille's name, I was just thinking of colors and such, thought about a deep wine-red, and thought about the French. That lead to me remembering my 5 years of High School French I took, of which I remember how to count, and some place-names. Gotta say, though, Marseille isn't Neo. Romana Torch is.**

 **Z-ro: They did it in canon, too, blame it on RT :P**

 **awsomelotad12345: Thanks! Glad you're enjoying Systema, and yeah, you aren't wrong, it's a lot of work. Back-end takes up most of my time, but as things start to become more and more detailed, they also seem to fill themselves out in a sense. As for why the Arcave instead of the Archive, it's because there's already a fic on there by that name, and I thought of Arcave first. It also sounds way dumber, and as such is perfect.**

 **Ferdiad: To be fair, if it was a serious situation, Jaune would have done that. As it was more of a 'Zwei and Cadejo; Troublemakers' kind of situation, it's best to let it play out, for the sake of the story. Sure, I could have Jaune make every single decision as if he was at war, and that everything requires hours of forethought, but that doesn't make it nearly as fun.**

 **Nemisis420: Well, now I have to create a mouse-Grimm known as Muad'dib.**

 **That about does it for this week, thank you all for stopping by! I have a twitter fat_flying, and a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale if you want to support me in any way.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	51. Size Matters

**Morning/Afternoon/Evening all, hope you are having/have had/will have a good day!**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid for supporting me this month!**

* * *

Jaune Arc stared at the large form of Ouroboros as he stared back, tongue flickering out to taste the air, smacking Jaune in the face as an unintentional side effect.

"Thanks."

Ouroboros did it a second time before Jaune learned and took a step backwards.

"Alright, you're a Greater Taijitu now, Ouroboros, so you can definitely help out in combat now. Time to get your sisters up to the same level."

It was with that line that Jaune brought Ishara and Freyja forth, rolling a Greater Soul Orb to each of them, and watching as they cracked it in their various ways.

Ishara, the smallest of all of his summons, began to glow a brilliant white, the Deathstalker summon becoming the size of a mastiff, as Freyja next to her also shone, becoming only slightly bigger, but covered in more plentiful, denser armor plating, her tusks gaining a razor-sharp serrated edge.

"Well, you two look like you could kill some stuff pretty easily," Jaune remarked, taking another step back. "Only one left is Cadejo, but we'll evolve him when he gets here. No sense in pulling him away from Ruby now."

Ishara, Ouroboros and Freyja looked like they agreed with him, though that was somewhat difficult to tell considering they weren't exactly the most expressive of his summons. Ishara especially, it was difficult to tell what she was thinking when her face was a single plate of chitin and eight beady blue eyes.

Then, all of a sudden, it was clear as day as Ishara, Freyja and Ouroboros all turned to glare at the newest interloper in the clearing.

Jaune drew Crocea Mors slowly out of its sheath, holding the weapon steady as he approached the lone Ursa.

It roared, and set about making an attack against the lone Hunter-in-training, who seemed almost confused that this low a level Grimm would even make an attempt instead of fleeing. Then again, no one had ever claimed Grimm to possess intelligence, and that theory seemed to be pretty accurate as the Ursa missed, and Jaune swiftly decapitated it.

No difficulty, no challenge, nothing. What there was was a small notification that was quickly added to the list of notifications he was still yet to look at after the day's events.

"That was significantly less exciting than I was hoping, gonna be honest," Jaune said to his assembled summons. They weren't exactly great conversationalists, but they listened, so that was nice.

Now, however, seemed like a good time to go through his list of notifications, so that was what Jaune began to do as he brought up the list.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[40th Vytal Tournament: Round Two]**

 **[** _ **Win the second round of the 40th Vytal Tournament.**_ **]**

 **[Reward: Choose from either a Formation Seed or a Divinity Seed.]**

Well, already off to an interesting start. "Formation Seed? Divinity Seed? What do either of those do? And does that mean I have to start literally farming?"

No one answered his question, which wasn't all that big a surprise.

"I'll just wait a bit on that one."

He moved onto the next in the list.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[Grimm Trainer]**

 **[** _ **Have 8 Greater Bound Souls.**_ **]**

 **[Reward: Choose from either Bestial Skill Book or Sentient Skill Book.]**

Jaune didn't really know what the rewards to that quest were either, but at least they were skill books, implying that they were skills. At least he'd have time before he had to worry about making that choice, though, seeing as the quest wasn't done yet. He was a little ways off from completing it, too, seeing as he only had six Bound Souls, and only five were Greater.

The last, latest notification was the one he'd gotten moments ago.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[+27,000XP, +600L, A Mysterious Scrap Of Paper]**

"Uh…" Jaune trailed off, reaching into his inventory. Out came the quote-unquote 'mysterious scrap of paper' which, as it turned out, was exactly what it said it was.

A piece of paper with seemingly nonsensical patterns drawn on it in slightly faded ink.

Jaune stared at it for a split second, wondering how he'd gotten so unlucky on the drop table to end up with this when a window popped up.

A skill book window.

One that Jaune was familiar with.

A quick tap of the 'yes I do want to learn this, thanks' button had him holding a glowing piece of paper that was, up until this point, mysterious.

And then he knew what it was. "Runecrafting? That sounds fancy."

 **[** _ **Crafting**_ **Subskill Unlocked!]**

 **[Runecrafting recipes unlocked!]**

The sudden influx of knowledge that came with it was astounding, and Jaune was suddenly made aware of a number of things.

Most prominently, a use for his Bronze Ingots.

Quickly he made his way into the Arcave, descending the stairs and entering the workshop, one hand reaching into his inventory as the other grabbed a hammer off the newly mounted tool rack, his destination the anvil Ruby had explained was crucial to making a workshop a workhome, or whatever it was she'd said.

He was only momentarily distracted when a smaller Ouroboros and a smaller Ishara, atop the same-sized Freyja wandered inside behind him, as he placed an ingot of Bronze on the anvil, equipping his Designer title as he did so, making sure not to forget this time.

He didn't need to heat it, for reasons that confused him, and instead he smacked it with the hammer, the sound of metal on metal reverberating out inside the underground workshop.

Another hit followed it up.

A fourth preceded the fifth, and on the fifth the beaten Bronze Ingot shifted forms all of a sudden, in its place two small slates of an indiscernible metal, one that was most definitely not bronze.

Jaune observed the panels of metal, and discovered that, contrary to popular belief, he did actually know what he was doing.

 **[Runic Slate]**

 **[A slate of magically treated metal, for use in Runecrafting.]**

This was progress, to be sure. He wasn't going around in circles, he was actually accomplishing something. According to what he'd learned from the scrap of paper, he'd need a few alchemic components before he could properly make Runes, whatever they actually were, but he was close.

He was almost level 10 in _Crafting_ , for that matter, and he had a perfect amount of Bronze to get him there.

Eleven more ingots became twenty-two more Runic Slates before he reached level 10, but what a worthwhile unlock.

 **[** _ **Crafting**_ **Unlocks!]**

 **[You can now craft: Crushed Herbs, Draughts, Nigredo, Glass and Glass Powder, Empty Capsules, Lesser Rune Powder, Adhesive, Binding Reagent, and Lesser Universal Runes!]**

Jaune nearly stumbled backwards from the influx of information that assaulted his senses.

Jaune… Jaune was going to have to go do some shopping. A lot of shopping.

It was nearly ten at night when Jaune stepped out of the Arcave for the final time of the evening, taking a deep breath of the cool forest air as he stretched his arms, working out the kinks in the tense muscles.

Or, he would have been if _System Body_ didn't do that automatically. It was hard to break muscle memory, after all.

He now had in his possession fifty Runic Slates for use at some given point, though he wasn't quite sure what for yet, as he didn't have any of the ingredients he'd need to make many of the Runes he had access to.

He needed, according to the System, a bunch of Alchemic Reagent, Hydrochloric Acid, Tar, and various herbs in order for him to actually make any Runes. A varied shopping list, that was for sure. He wasn't even quite sure where to get a hold of Hydrochloric Acid, or Tar, for that matter, but he'd figure it out. After the Vytal Tournament, of course, and speaking of which, the third round was tomorrow. He needed to be fully rested in order to cheer Pyrrha and Yang on before the final bout the day after.

Man, this had already been a hectic few days.

Jaune couldn't wait until Beacon resumed its more typical courses. At least he'd have some more free time to dedicate to exploring a lot of the various intricacies that his semblance kept giving him.

Maybe even take a day to forget about all of the System and just relax. That would be nice.

* * *

Amity Colosseum was the tensest it had ever been as it floated above the Vale skyline, and yet, inexplicably, the cheering was the loudest it had been since the 40th Vytal Festival had begun.

Four competitors remained, all standing atop the center stage.

Yang Xiao Long relished the attention, her beaming grin and confident waving eliminating any doubt that she may not be ready for this kind of situation.

Penny Polendina was more reserved, but retained a childish excitement that was almost infectious.

Mercury Black looked confident yet bored, the oh-so-smug expression on his face never leaving.

Pyrrha Nikos wore a firm expression, emerald eyes hardened, and yet those who knew her could tell that something was tugging at her thoughts.

Jaune was worried. His seat in the stands, surrounded by his closest friends, was comfortable, afforded a great view, and was close to the entrance to the locker rooms for ease of access, and yet none of that mattered one bit to the blond team leader.

Pyrrha had waved him off the last time he'd asked if she was okay, and it was clear that whatever had been bothering her hadn't just been their previous match.

"Damn it, Pyrrha. You'd better not be up first," Jaune muttered under his breath, watching in anticipation along with the rest of the crowds as the selection wheel began to rotate.

It spun, faster and faster, ticking moment to moment ever closer to a final selection, and then finally it settled, the decision made.

Jaune let out a sigh of relief.

"And our first match today is Yang Xiao Long versus Mercury Black! This is sure to be an explosive fight!"

Jaune didn't pay Port any attention, instead standing up and making his way towards the lockers.

"Jaune?" Ruby asked, looking to him. "What's wrong?"

Jaune shook his head. "Nothing, don't worry. Just gonna go check on Pyrrha, I'll be back before the match is over."

Ruby shrugged. "I'm not the one Yang will rip asunder if she finds out you weren't watching."

Jaune paused for a moment. "Rip asunder? Have you been hanging around Weiss too much?"

Weiss's indignant cry went ignored as Jaune resumed his path, only to pause once more.

"Cadejo, can you keep my seat for me?" Jaune asked of his summon, the wolf emerging from his shadow and alarming some of the nearby audience.

A quick pant was all the answer Jaune needed, and once again he resumed his travel, stepping down the staircase into the locker room.

Perfectly timed, too, as he gave the exiting Penny a smile, the ginger returning it with her typical innocence.

Leaving only Pyrrha in the locker room, sat on one of the benches, sharpening Milo.

The slow, methodical scraping of metal being sharpened was the only sound in the room before Jaune spoke.

"Pyrrha. Something's wrong, I can tell. Talk to me."

Pyrrha jolted upright, turning her head to face her leader. "I-I'm fine!"

Her reply came quickly, too quickly, and Jaune ignored it. "No you're not. Tell me, Pyrrha."

"I… I can't."

That took Jaune aback. "What? What do you mean?"

Pyrrha rose from her seat, placing Milo on her back. "I wish I could tell you, Jaune, you have a way of finding answers to so many questions, but I can't tell you. I'm sorry."

Jaune swallowed his confusion for a moment. "Why can't you tell me?"

There was a pause, as Pyrrha considered her words. "I've been sworn to secrecy for a number of reasons I can't get into. Just know it's important, as important as keeping your semblance a secret, maybe more so. I can't tell you yet."

"Yet," Jaune said, picking up on the word. "When-"

He cut himself off with a shake of his head. "No. What can I do to help?"

He seemed to catch Pyrrha completely off-guard. "What?"

"It's bothering you, and you can't tell me what it is, but you can still ask me to help. You don't have to tell me specifics, or even really anything, but at least let me try. You're my partner, Pyrrha, I need to at least try and help."

Pyrrha looked almost lost as she tried to gather the words she was looking for, before her face turned resolute. "Have you ever thought about destiny?"

This time it was Jaune's turn to be lost for words. "Destiny… I can't say for sure. I mean, sure, I've thought about it, but I've always thought it was more like a goal than a set path, you know?" He paused, thinking it through. "I don't think destiny is something you will achieve no matter what. I think it's something you have to work towards, a final objective to reach out to, to strive for."

Pyrrha let out a laugh. "Once again you prove that we are alike in a number of ways. You seem to share my opinion."

She lost the smile a moment later. "What if you were suddenly given an opportunity that would change everything you thought possible? What if you were presented with a choice that might tear you away from everything you know, everything you hold dear, just to achieve that destiny?"

Jaune took a seat on the bench, running one hand through his hair. "I wasn't given a choice to get this Semblance, Pyrrha, but you can be damned sure that had I have been presented with the choice of taking it or not, I would've taken it."

Pyrrha looked to her partner, expression frozen.

"Without it, I would never have become who I am today. I couldn't have stood toe to toe with you, with Yang, with any of our friends, our team. I couldn't win solo fights, I would've probably died against my first Grimm. And yet, with it, I can do all those things. I can stand up to Grimm, to the White Fang, I can lead a team, help my friends. I've made mistakes, sure, we all have. Dad always said it wasn't making the mistake that was the problem, it was failing to learn from it."

Pyrrha sat next to him. "And what if I don't know what will become of me after I make the choice?"

Jaune thought for a long moment. "What if I wasn't a good person? What if I used what I'd been given to kill, maim, destroy?"

"What? Jaune, you're one of the best people I've ever met!" Pyrrha was quick to reply.

Jaune smiled slightly. "Exactly, Pyrrha. You're a good person, one of the best. We can all agree on that. I don't think there's anything out there that can change you. I think that even if there was something out there that would try to change that, you'd break it down, beat it up, and send it packing. You're Pyrrha Nikos, the Invincible Girl. Whatever it is, whatever has you so worried, don't be. It'll work out. It always does."

"And if it doesn't?"

Jaune stood, holding out his hand to his partner. "Then we make it work out. We're AWBN. We're unstoppable. Nothing can go wrong when we're working together."

There was a single moment where Pyrrha accepted his hand and found herself pulled to her feet by the only person she could truly call her leader, and a single moment where she felt no longer worried.

It was ruined by the screams and shouts from the audience above.

* * *

"I didn't do anything wrong!" Yang shouted, eyes burning red.

"You completely shattered a competitor's leg, Xiao Long. After his Aura was depleted. And after the match had ended," Ironwood replied, his expression calm and collected, even if his voice didn't quite reflect that. "You're being disqualified."

Yang was practically up in arms at that. "What!? He attacked me!"

Ironwood let out a long, drawn-out sigh. "So you have said. However, video footage shows that to be patently untrue."

"Are you saying I'm lying?!" Yang shouted again.

Ironwood held out one hand, and Ruby grabbed her sister by the arm, pulling her backwards. "I'm not saying that. What I am saying, however, is that under bouts of stress and combat fatigue, a soldier can see things that may not be entirely true."

"Combat fatigue? He barely touched me! I wasn't stressed, I wasn't fatigued! He tried to kick me after the match! I struck in self-defense!"

"And because of that _unprovoked_ attack, he may never walk again! He and his team have been taken off to a private hospital in Vale due to the severity of his injuries! Even if it was self-defense, even if it what had happened wasn't recorded, and what you said is completely true, it still constitutes a dramatic overreaction!" Ironwood raised his voice for the first time, and Yang, albeit still fuming, backed down.

Ironwood wasn't finished, though. "Thanks to this incident, no matter who was actually at fault, we still have a massive influx of Grimm to deal with. The sheer negativity generated by this incident is absurd, and the media coverage isn't exactly helping with that. If this was Atlas I might be able to clamp down on the outlets to prevent them from whipping the entirety of the kingdom into a frenzy, but unfortunately, Vale has laws for the freedom of the press. So, Xiao Long, you have been disqualified, there will be no redemption from that. Seeing as two of the four competitors have been removed from the tournament, the next match will also be the final match. So, sit here, figure out exactly what you did, and maybe watch the recording. It'll show you what actually happened."

The General was half-tempted to slam the door shut behind him as he paced evenly out of the room, tirade finished, but he resisted the urge.

AWBN and RRYN turned to face Yang.

"What. Come to watch me fall from grace?" She spat out, eyes still glowing that bright red.

"Yang…" Ruby began, only to be pushed aside by her sister.

"Don't. Just… don't. I didn't do it. He attacked me."

"Yang, you can't be serious. There is footage, evidence. You can't just deny that," Weiss spoke up.

Yang was up on her feet in an instant. "Then the footage was faked!"

Weiss didn't back down from the taller blond's challenge. "Oh, really? Do tell me exactly who framed you, and how they did so by doctoring live footage!"

Yang actually growled at that. "So, what, you don't believe me? You think I could really do that to someone without reason?"

"I think that the General is right, and it was something akin to combat fatigue induced hallucination! We all know how you get in intense situations, you lose your temper! It's practically what your semblance is based on!" Weiss fired back.

"I didn't do it!" Yang was practically screaming, now, and Weiss looked about ready to draw her weapon.

"Enough!" Jaune shouted, loud enough to drown out the rest of the assembled group. "It doesn't matter whether or not it was deliberate, that we can discuss at a later date. Right now, Yang needs space, to cool down. Weiss, you especially. You aren't exactly taking this very diplomatically, and it isn't helping."

Weiss looked ready to argue, but Jaune just looked at her. "Weiss, find something else to take up your time. Go visit your sister, or something."

Weiss was about to take his suggestion and step out of the room when Yang spoke up.

"Do you really think I could do something like this?"

Lilac eyes looked up at all the people in the room.

The only one to speak was Blake. "Yang, it's possible."

Yang looked like she'd been physically struck, eyes widening as she recoiled. Blake refused to meet those lilac eyes.

"I've… seen it before. People start off as nice, friendly, but then, their temper, their anger, it takes hold of them, they become enslaved to their fury. I've experienced it before."

There was only silence for a moment, before a voice, quiet and downcast, spoke.

"Get out."

"Yang-"

"GET OUT!"

Jaune felt the room heat up in an instant as Yang rose off her bed, eyes burning that piercing bright red, hair glowing golden.

Seven people quickly fled the room, unwilling to try reasoning with her.

Yang collapsed once more, folding onto her bed, where she lay for what seemed like hours.

* * *

"Hey firecracker."

Fists clenched on her sheets, bundling them between her fingers. "What do you want, Qrow?"

"Came to check up on you."

"Yeah? I'm fine, now go away."

"Why'd you do it?"

His question cut through any pretense of a regular conversation, and Yang rolled over, sitting up. "You know why."

"Do I? You attacked a helpless kid. You're either crazy, or lying."

Yang glared at her uncle. "I'm not lying."

Qrow let out a rueful chuckle. "Crazy it is then."

Yang released a humourless snort. "Runs in the family, I guess."

Qrow sat on the bed opposite her. "Not too far off with that, to be fair."

Yang's eyes met Qrow's. "Oh, is that what we're doing now? I'm at my lowest, so now you'll let me in on something you and Dad never told me before?"

Qrow uncapped his flask, taking a swig. "If you want."

He held out it out, the invitation unspoken.

Silence befell the room, and Yang took the flask.

* * *

The atmosphere was muted, devoid of excitement. The upcoming match was one of necessity, not of competitive spirit, and the gathered crowd were just hoping to put the previous incident out of their minds.

"Pyrrha, do you mind if Weiss and I didn't stay to watch the match?" Blake asked her teammate. "I want you to win, of course, as does Weiss, but I think we've had enough of combat for a while."

Pyrrha gave her teammates a half-hearted smile. "I only wish I could join you. Truth be told, I don't want to be a part of this any more than anyone else would."

"Then don't be."

Pyrrha, Weiss and Blake all rounded on their leader, confused.

"What, give up?" Weiss asked. "We can't do that. They need to continue, to work up the audience once more. It will help lower the rampant negativity."

"It's a late submission, but with everything else that's happened, I doubt that matters."

"Jaune, what do you mean 'late submission'?" Pyrrha asked, quirking an eyebrow at her teammate.

Jaune stood from his seat, stepping towards the locker room. "I'll be fighting. The rest of you, go relax. Find somewhere to get something nice to drink, chill out. I'll take care of this myself."

Objections came fast, but Jaune ignored them. "I don't really care about any reasons you might have. This is hurting all of you. Go spend some time with RRYN, check on Yang, whatever. Just don't subject yourselves to this sort of thing any more. It isn't helping anyone. I'll handle it. Besides, it's not like it matters if we win or lose. As long as it's a good fight."

Pyrrha and Weiss looked like they were going to object further before Blake interrupted. "He's right. Trust me, I'd know. Time I returned the favour, Weiss. Tea?"

Weiss let out a long sigh, before straightening up. "Coffee. Pyrrha, will you be coming with us?"

Pyrrha met Jaune's eyes, and he gave her a nod.

"I think I will. I know a nice place away from prying eyes." She turned to face her leader. "Good luck, Jaune."

Jaune smiled. "Come on. We all know I make my own luck."

* * *

 **Things are happening! Things that aren't canon! Woo!**

 **Anyway, let me dive right into reviews.**

 **typhonyx: I'm sort of workshopping a kind of fight that plays out with just physical skills for some point in the near future, but the only problem with that is that Jaune does have the perks and title advantages at all times. It's nothing significantly noticeable, but it does kind of ruin the illusion. I'm going to work it out, of course, but it may take some time. As for scarf-snakes, it is still possible, because Bound Souls can reduce their size back to their Minor stage. Hooray!**

 **Drakon Hunter: Dork Knights is great, holy crap. I'll still stick with Lancaster, simply because it has that regal style that all the Jaune ship names seem to have, but Dork Knights is definitely a great name.**

 **Kalbario: Whilst it may be attention-grabbing for the Schnees, it is pretty clear that Jaune isn't a Schnee. Does that mean he's attracted Jacques attention? We'll just have to wait and see I suppose. :P**

 **Guest: If he actually had any Goliath drops I'd be sure to make a summon, but as it stands, he is currently empty in that regard.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: Some people dislike Blake and her story, and I can understand why. I'm going to try and at least do it a little bit of justice, though. Glad you liked the chapter though!**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Systema, if Systema was a literal video-game that never stopped the feature-creep. lmao. You have no idea how familiar I am with device maintenance and lag, though. Living in Australia means my average ping to Australian servers is 120 on a good day. I can't imagine trying to live with that in real life.**

 **armentho: Callisto as a walking tank is great, but the density and tensile strength of the plates aren't all that great. Sure, they can take a pistol round, and even a couple low-yield rifle rounds, but anything greater will probably punch right through. This isn't anywhere close to the final stage for the evolutions, though. As for Worm, I've actually read a somewhat-decent amount of it, but I'd stopped a while ago, other things had grabbed my attention. That was before I ever started writing fanfiction, though, so it's been a good while. I should really pick it back up. Still have it open in a chrome tab on my phone from all that time ago.**

 **Reesesracer: The good old snek and pupper concept. I'm still a sucker for cute animals, especially dogs. Man, dogs on ice, that never fails to make me laugh.**

 **hirshja: To be fair, the power within Cinder is at least somewhat stable. I think. Who knows what Ozpin is thinking? I certainly do, but I'm not telling.**

 **Plasma Dragon 312: I hope some of these questions have been answered by the time you read this. Saphron was Indigo, currently Jaune has not merged Mana with Aura in any way as far as I remember, and enemies only scale to player level, not skill level, but seeing as you get XP for player level when you get XP for skill level, it shouldn't matter.**

 **That about does it for this week, thank you all for coming! I have a twitter fat_flying and a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale if you wish to support me, and supporting me does get you access to the full spreadsheet, if you were ever truly curious. It's massive, now.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	52. Mechanical Menaces 3: Uprising

**Uh, gonna be honest, I'm really working the M rating these next few chapters. You've been warned?**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid for supporting me this month!**

* * *

"What a surprising turn of events! A startlingly late change of plans from Team AWBN has their competitor withdraw, only to be replaced by their leader, crowd favorite Jaune Arc! Normally we wouldn't allow this late a change, but with the recent incident and a few other things, along with permission from the other competitor Penny Polendina, we have decided to move forward with what is now the final match in the 40th Vytal Tournament!"

Jaune could hear Port clear as day through the speakers in the locker room as he double-checked his equipped gear, making sure that Tranquility was fully loaded before folding it up and stowing it on the mag-plate on his belt underneath his coat.

"Yes, indeed! This is going to be one for the history books, without a doubt, Peter! Mr Arc, who possesses a rare Semblance that allows him to summon the departed souls of his foes, versus Ms Polendina, a Hunter-in-training who shows great potential in not only her capability with her rather unique weapons, but in physical and mental prowess as well. This is set to be a fight for the ages!"

Cadejo looked up at him as he sheathed Crocea Mors, and he ran his hand through the thick fur atop the wolf. Oobleck and Port were both adept at handling crowds, that was for sure. Neither had mentioned Pyrrha by name, if just to help save a shred of her image, and they were doing an excellent job of hyping up the match, making it more exciting than what he suspected many of the audience thought it was going to be.

Now, though, Jaune shed his mind of excess thoughts. There was no time to be concerned with useless information.

Penny was tough. Possibly stronger than Pyrrha, though now that he was taking her place that question wouldn't be answered any time soon.

Her weapons were unique, Oobleck was right. A series of blades attached to what looked to be razor-sharp cables. They were going to be a right nuisance to deal with, especially on a larger scale, and when he was without many of his abilities. Ferrokinesis was one option, a stealthy approach, but still somewhat noticeable. On the opposite side, he could completely do away with subtlety and go all out with his semblance, but there were so many negatives associated with that plan that he just ignored that part of his brain.

Or he could just try to overwhelm her with a barrage of attacks and hope he could hit hard enough to break through her defense.

"You ready, boy?" Jaune asked, and Cadejo let out a confirmatory bark, tongue lolling out of his mouth.

Reaching into his inventory, Jaune withdrew his final Greater Soul Orb, tossing it to the wolf. "Hold onto it. It'll be a great way to rile the audience up."

Cadejo was more than happy to have a glowing ball in his mouth as if he'd just played a game of fetch, tail wagging back and forth.

"And so, without further ado, join us in welcoming our finalists of the 40th Vytal Tournament!"

Jaune stepped onto the field, Cadejo in tow, and found himself deafened by the cheering of the crowd.

"I do hope we can have a good match, Friend Jaune!" Penny said with a smile, and Jaune found her enthusiasm infectious.

"Same here, Penny. Don't hold back now."

"The final match will begin in 3! 2! 1!"

* * *

Jaune had been expecting the cabled-swords. He'd been expecting a difficult fight. He hadn't been expecting the sheer effectiveness that Penny could wield her weapons with.

They came in at all different angles, two or more at a time, practically guaranteeing him unable to block the strikes.

All the while she kept Cadejo on his paws, making the wolf unable to perform any kind of attack as he narrowly avoided the consistent blows.

Jaune contemplated bringing out the rest of his Bound Souls, but he wasn't entirely sure how much help it would be. Penny had plenty of weapons to deal with them all, or so it seemed.

Then again, they weren't doing any good unsummoned. There wasn't really a good argument against bringing them forth. He just needed a small break from the onslaught to do so, something Penny seemed to realize.

She wasn't going to give him a moment to himself, he realized, and that meant he was going to have to make one for himself.

He hoped this would work.

Jaune locked eyes with Penny, and for a single second Penny froze, eyes widening as she struggled to move, before rapidly breaking free of the control Jaune had for all but a single moment.

He'd already used that time to break free of her onslaught and bring forth his summons, all of them forming from the mist that floated free of his shadow.

Alcmena, Callisto, Ouroboros, Ishara and Freyja emerged from the gaseous darkness, and Cadejo took the opportunity to bite down on the orb, cracking it between his jaws.

The wolf glowed a brilliant white as he grew larger, plates growing spikes as his size increased, fangs lengthening.

Nine slightly smaller copies of the wolf appeared as well, spiky plating and sharpened fangs bared at their opponent.

The audience, once silent, now burst forth into cheers, the noise hitting him like water from a busted dam.

He couldn't help but smile.

The atmosphere was infectious, the crowd's cheering egging him on to strive to win. He could understand why Pyrrha found this to be so exhilarating, why she'd spent much of her life in these kinds of competitions.

Penny launched forwards, slingshotting from her blades and snapping Jaune out of his momentary stardom as he deflected her off the side of his shield, before immediately having to duck and then leap sideways to avoid a few of the blades that followed their wielder.

Callisto took a swing as Penny passed by, but Penny was already moving past, out of the range of any of Jaune's summons except for Alcmena, who took to the skies and sent a barrage of bronze feathers down, and yet Penny avoided them, her blades either deflecting the projectiles or sticking into them, launching the girl around like she was a yo-yo doing tricks.

Jaune found himself struggling to keep up with her rapid movements and seemingly random angles of attack. If it wasn't for his boosted reaction time, he wouldn't be able to deflect the strikes as he was now, albeit narrowly.

He'd already tried to freeze Penny in place once, and it had worked, but there was no guarantee that it'd work again, even if he did manage to lock eyes with his combatant. Penny had learned not to give him any kind of edge, and he respected that.

None of his summons could keep up with her, but at the same time, Penny appeared to be unwilling to take a solid attempt at one of them, almost as if she thought they were real animals that might die if she landed a hit.

To be fair, Jaune had to assume that they would simply become unsummoned after enough punishment, but Penny didn't know that.

It gave him an advantage, however minor, and from the looks of things, that was going to be only a droplet in a drought so to speak. He was going to need a plan, a proper, well-thought-out plan of attack that would lead him as close to victory as he could pull.

A shame he couldn't come up with one at the moment.

Penny passed his guard, a blade finding its way underneath his guard and hooking into his chest, Aura flaring as it lifted him up, sending him backwards through the air.

She was quick to take advantage of that, sending another blade to meet him mid-air, but a quick spin had him place his shield in position to take the brunt of the weapon as he hit the ground, a _Rolling Recovery_ bringing him back to his feet.

He felt himself slide backwards even still, Callisto holding out a paw to halt his unintended retreat.

Penny came to a halt at the opposite end of the field, blades realigning themselves behind her.

Even after everything that had happened, he was enjoying this. Call it a guilty pleasure, or whatever, he wasn't going to lose. No matter what it took. He owed his team that much.

"You are an excellent fighter, Friend Jaune. You are able to keep up with my attacks," Penny remarked, and Jaune took the moment to take a breath.

"Barely," He replied. "You've got me on the defensive."

"Then if you don't mind, let us take it up a notch, as my father says."

It was at this point that the laser fire began.

* * *

At this point, Jaune was wondering why he hadn't expected Penny's swords to also be guns.

Frankly, in this world of 'also-a-gun', expecting anything less was just a bout of ill-preparedness showing itself.

Of course, the fact that they fired what appeared to be superheated green plasma instead of standard rounds meant that the energy displacement on his shield still cooked the flesh underneath, and if it wasn't for his over-abundance of Aura he would have definitely had to have given up at this point. He was nowhere near as nimble as Pyrrha, even now, there was no way he was going to be able to weave in and out of this barrage of very calculated fire.

He could move, though, and that was what he did, shield still taking the brunt of the burning weapons-fire, heart pumping as he began to close in on Penny, his rounded angle of approach doing little to avoid the projectiles.

It was better than blindly charging at her, but only just.

He could feel Cadejo approaching from the opposite angle, pack in tow, Callisto and Ishara following closely behind, Freyja and Ouroboros taking the direct approach, and Alcmena swooping in from above.

This was their consolidated attack. It had to work.

He could see through the eyes of all his summons at once, his vision becoming both confusing and yet oh-so-clear at the same time, and he let the information flow into his mind.

Penny had more than one floating blade-turret, and she had let go of any preconceived notions of potentially hurting any of his Bound Souls, opening fire on all of them.

It gave Jaune more room to maneuver, though. Crocea Mors in hand, Jaune threw his shield, the metallic object taking a blast that sent it flying, and he ducked under the next, sword arcing up to strike Penny in the ribcage.

He hit hard, taking nearly forty percent of her Aura in the one attack, but it had cost him a significant amount, his own Aura hovering around fifty percent.

And he'd lost Alcmena, Ishara, Ouroboros and Callisto in the hail of plasma fire, the summons having returned to wherever it was they stayed inside his soul.

Not to mention the fact that Penny had just shot back inside his guard and delivered a punishing strike that he only just managed to put his sword in front of, driving him to his knees as he slid backwards, wind knocked out of his lungs.

Penny was using her swords like a jetpack, the plasma acting as a kind of propulsion. Any other time Jaune would have thought that amazing, but he was somewhat preoccupied.

A stray bolt of plasma hit Freyja, immediately disintegrating her into smoke, and Jaune swore under his breath as he staggered to his feet, looking around for his shield.

Another concentrated burst of plasma took out half of Cadejo's remaining pack, leaving the wolf with only two clones, fangs bared.

His shield wasn't close, but Cadejo was already on it, scooping it up in his mouth and bounding over to Jaune as another burst took out the rest of his pack.

The wolf didn't make it, a blast hitting him in the side, but the shield had traveled far enough that Jaune leaped for it, threading his arm through the straps as he rolled, arm coming up just in time to take the final blast that was supposed to eliminate him from the competition.

He had no more Bound Souls to bring out to assist him, and bringing out Electrus or Platinus would raise far too many questions.

It was just him versus Penny. A match that would go down in history, no doubt.

Then, the atmosphere itself changed. _Sixth Sense_ triggered, and he didn't know why. No attack was coming, as far as he was aware, and all Penny's swords had hit the ground at once, the clattering of metal on tile loud.

He peeked out from behind his shield at his opponent, whose head was pointed at the ground.

"Penny? You good?" He asked, somewhat worried for his friend. This could be a trick, something to throw him off, but he didn't think so. She already had the upper-hand, there wasn't all that much of a point. Still, he wasn't going to throw down his weapons and rush to her side.

"Penny?" He asked again, and this time he did get a response.

Red eyes stared at him. "Designation P.E.N.N.Y offline. Remote function active. Eliminate hostiles."

Well, that didn't make a lick of sense to Jaune.

Of course, despite Penny's sudden personality-change, which Jaune would figure out at a later point in time, she still seemed to be capable of combat, as all of her swords lifted off the ground and began to spin in place, a ball of glowing green plasma growing in size in the center of the orbiting weapons.

Jaune definitely did not want to be standing where he was at that moment, and he realized that not a moment too soon as he leaped sideways, a veritable torrent of plasma effectively wiping out anything where he had been standing just a moment ago, the smell of burning ozone wafting through the air.

There was absolutely no doubt that would have destroyed his Aura and left anybody but him with severe injuries.

"Penny, what was that! You could've killed someone!" Jaune shouted, concern etched into his rapidly paling face as Penny rounded on him, another beam charging.

"Designation P.E.N.N.Y offline. Remote function active. Eliminate hostiles," Penny repeated, before letting loose another blast.

Jaune couldn't avoid this one, instead raising his shield and activating _Enduring_ , the buff to his Endurance proving to be the only reason he wasn't practically liquefied as his Aura shattered under the intense power and heat of the plasma beam.

"And with that, Penny Polendina is victorious with a powerful attack that Jaune Arc is unable to defend from! Congratulations to our 40th Vytal Tournament victor Penny Polend-"

Port never got the chance to finish congratulating Penny as she opened fire again.

Jaune had no choice but to _Flash Step_ out of the way, landing in a slide as he tried his best to avoid the fourth beam that missed him by a hair's breadth.

"Ms Polendina, stand down!" Port shouted into the microphone, and Jaune could see the Atlesian Knights stepping forward to arrest Penny.

He had to admit he was very confused when they aimed their guns at him, and then he was very concerned when they squeezed down on the triggers, rounds hitting his shield with a staccato rhythm as he hid underneath it, trying to keep his limbs out of the way.

"What!? What is happening?" Oobleck questioned, standing up from his chair in the commentator's box, concern etched into his face.

The audience were no different, all standing and murmuring.

Glances were swapped, and eyes met the Atlesian Knights that stood guard around the entrances to the arena.

Those glances became stares of panic and fear as the guns raised towards the civilians.

The stares became wide-eyed expressions of fear as the audience began to scream in one, loud torrent of voices that drowned out the sounds of gunfire as the robotic soldiers opened fire.

And, to top it all off, what looked to be an Elder Nevermore landed on top of the arena, and promptly passed through the now non-existent shield that was supposed to prevent aerial Grimm from entering the stadium.

As the final little decoration to the fear, panic and terror sundae, Jaune found himself moments away from being hit by another superheated plasma beam courtesy of Penny.

* * *

Ensign Brunswick was not having a very good day.

This was, in part, to the fact that he was bleeding out on the ground of the ship he served on, the Daedalus, with a rather deep stab wound in his side that refused to stop leaking his vital blood that he needed to live.

A rather crucial part of living, in fact.

He'd thought the new Ensign was attractive, if a little short. She'd shown up out of nowhere with orders from above to be taken to the bridge, and he'd been placed as her escort.

He'd thought that to be a blessing, and despite the fact that the pink-and-brown haired Ensign didn't seem to speak, he still tried to make pleasant small-talk.

She put a blade into him the very moment they stepped onto the bridge.

He was pretty sure he was the only survivor of her wrath. Dust, the Captain had been decapitated. It was definitely a grisly sight.

"Ah, it's good to be back!" A voice exclaimed, and Ensign Brunswick twisted, face contorting in agony as he saw the short murderer letting their top prisoner out of his cell in the brig, Roman Torchwick stepping out into the light and taking his hat and cane, as offered by the woman who had brutalized an entire Atlesian bridge crew.

Brunswick had no feeling in his left arm, but his right grasped the grip of his spare pistol, his father's pistol. It was old, given to him by his father when he enlisted. He was going to die here, with no one to pass it onto, but he would be damned if he was going to go without a fight.

The moment Torchwick stepped into view, Ensign Brunswick lifted the handgun and squeezed the trigger, letting out a shout of agony and rage as he did so.

The handgun clicked, jammed. Brunswick's eyes widened.

"Tch. You missed one, Neo."

The last thing Ensign Brunswick ever saw was the end of a cane, and a bright light.

* * *

Tully Mustang was a mother of three, a wife of one, and a well-known baker, who ran Tully's Bakery in downtown Vale, where her clientele were as varied as they were friendly. She knew all of them by name, knew their favorite order, and usually what they were up to on any given day.

She always ran a baked goods stall whenever the Vytal Tournament was on in Vale, and when it wasn't, she hosted a viewing party, fully catered, and completely open to the public.

She, like many of Vale's people, didn't exactly like that her view of the horizon was obstructed by Atlesian aircraft, but she understood it was necessary, like many of the things people had to do in this world.

Her eldest son was a doctor, now, he'd just finished his studies at medical school. Her youngest daughter was at Signal, training to help people. Her middle son was training to be an engineer, to follow in his father's footsteps.

Tully was happy. She had a loving family, many friends, and she tried her best to help the community in whatever way she could.

She was repaid for all of this by a rifle bullet that punctured through her back, cutting through her spine and exiting through her ribs, straight through the left lung.

She was left bleeding on the floor, drowning in her own blood, unable to move.

The White Fang soldier that had fired the bullet paid her no mind as they moved onto the next target in what could only be described as a field of civilians.

To the White Fang, it was a target-rich environment.

* * *

Doctor Siniy was not a Valean native, instead hailing from a small town east of Mantle.

She had moved to Vale at the age of sixteen, in order to follow her dreams and become a doctor.

Now, at the age of forty-three, she ran her own emergency clinic in the downtown district of Vale, where the only thing that truly made her stand out was not her accent, but her skill with all sorts of medical emergencies.

She had seen stabbings, blunt-force trauma, car accidents, concussions, gunshot wounds, and a whole variety of interesting injuries.

She'd seen the aftermath of Grimm attacks. She'd seen those who'd survived, and those who hadn't.

She'd never seen a Grimm personally until today.

An Ursa, bigger than a truck, took her head into its mouth, and bit down, before moving on to her patients.

* * *

Pyrrha, Blake and Weiss stared in shock at the display on the screen ahead of them, as did many of the other clients of the small cafe they were sat inside.

Penny had started trying to kill Jaune, as had the Atlesian Knights.

Other robotic soldiers had turned on civilians.

They were on their feet in a flash, drinks left abandoned as they went to help their friends.

Of course, stepping out onto the street, they realized that getting to the stadium was going to be a bit more complicated.

"Hostiles spotted. Opening fire," One of the Atlesian Knights said, robotic voice joining the chorus of other noises as it and the squad behind it rotated and opened fire on the three members of AWBN.

Pyrrha was instantly in front, her two teammates behind her as her bronze shield took the brunt of the rounds that hit it.

There was a single break in the gunfire and Blake and Weiss moved, a twin trail of glyphs curving around as the two launched forwards, propelled along, blades glinting in the evening light as they cut through the metallic enemies in front of them.

The ones they'd missed soon found themselves missing important parts as Pyrrha pushed her way through to rejoin her team.

"We need to get to Beacon!" Weiss shouted over the noise of what had once been a peaceful Valean street. "They'll need help with the evacuation, and it's where the White Fang are headed!"

Pyrrha and Blake couldn't help but agree, if for differing reasons.

"We'll need to move now, then!" Pyrrha replied in kind.

Blake and Weiss shared a single glance, before the group's attention was taken by the form of a gigantic robot bursting through a nearby wall, gleaming chrome shining through the dust and smoke, the menacing red glint of the Paladin almost egging the three on.

"Why is it always robots?"

* * *

Jaune had a single moment to think, less than a second.

It was either reveal his abilities, or die.

The beam hit his _Mana Field_ , punching through layer after layer, until it hit the _Mana Shield_ underneath, Jaune straining against the pure energy of the plasma beam.

He couldn't move, every single fiber of his being straining against this unending onslaught of heat and energy, and he held tight, forcing every bit of Mana he could into the small shield that was the only thing between him and certain death.

All around him were other students, both on the field and in the stands, trying their best to destroy anything that threatened the safety of the civilians.

The Nevermore was under assault from all of SSSN and CFVY, and other teams were scattered, trying to deal with the Atlesian Knights that were firing into crowds with indiscriminate intent.

Jaune let out a shout that soon turned into a roar, his voice thundering across the entirety of Vytal as he took a step forward.

And another.

His shield braced, _Mana Shield_ in front of it, the plane of Mana barely holding on as the plasma began to weaken, Jaune began to increase his pace.

Then the intensity of the plasma doubled, and Jaune was driven to one knee as his _Mana Shield_ cracked underneath the onslaught.

He could feel the skin on his hands and arms bubbling, his HP beginning to steadily decrease.

It was agony, still, and yet all Jaune could do was scream in rage.

And then, all in a single moment, the onslaught ended with the sound of a sniper rifle firing.

Penny fell, a hole in her head, sparks flying as she and all her blades hit the ground.

Jaune hit the ground too, legs too weak to hold him up, even as his injuries began to heal.

Ruby skidded to a stop next to him, hefting one of his arms over her shoulder and lifting.

She struggled underneath Jaune's weight for a moment, before he found his own legs finally operating, feet planted on the tiles.

"Jaune!" Ruby sobbed, tears streaming down her face, the barrel of Crescent Rose still smoking.

There was so much happening around them, Jaune was spinning.

Penny lay dead on the floor, as did so many civilians, so many students.

Atlesian Knights still remained, slowly being eliminated by the remaining fighters.

Bullheads were flying in from above, some to evacuate survivors, and yet others dropping off Grimm and White Fang soldiers.

The sounds of war echoed from all around.

For once, Jaune was completely lost.

Emotion threatened to overwhelm him.

And then, in a single moment, it was all removed from his mind as _System Mind_ swept it all away.

"Ruby, go help those who need it! We need to evacuate everyone off of Vytal!" He spoke, his voice authoritative.

"What about Penny?!" Ruby let out amidst another sob, though already her voice was steeling, her eyes hardening.

Jaune spared the dead girl a glance. "I'm going to try something. I don't know if it will work, but I have to try. Something went wrong, something took control of her. She's a robot."

Ruby nodded, one hand wiping the tears from her eyes. "I know. Please, Jaune. Try."

With that, Ruby rushed off, a trail of petals in her wake, Crescent Rose's blade entering and exiting an Ursa in a single movement.

Jaune slid to his knees next to Penny, his hands coming to rest on her chest.

"Come on System, don't fail me now."

Jaune closed his eyes, and focused everything he had.

Penny did not stir. Penny did not wake up, nor reactivate.

But when Jaune removed his hands, a glowing green orb sat in them, throbbing slowly, almost like a heart.

 **[Steel Puppet's Soul Orb]**

It was all he could do.

* * *

Yang's fist met White Fang mask as she sent the man flying, cheap mask cracking underneath the punishment she'd dealt.

"Get out of our school!" Yang shouted, delivering a crushing blow to the stomach of another White Fang soldier, before expending a shotgun shell on a nearby Atlesian Knight.

"Yeah! Get your own!" Nora shouted as her hammer broke the entire ribcage of a White Fang soldier, launching him into another in a tangle of limbs.

One of Ren's blades cut through a Beowolf that had gotten behind the two, cutting it down. "I don't think that's what they're after, Nora."

"What the hell are Atlas doing? Why aren't they shutting down their robots?" Yang asked, looking to her teammates.

Ren pointed, and both Yang and Nora looked where he was pointing.

The three watched as the Daedalus turned and opened fire on the Iapyx, sending it smoking into the Icarus as the two aircraft began to plummet towards the ground, smoke, fire and sparks in their trail.

Razorbacks fled from the respective corvettes, as well as some from the Daedalus, splintering off and heading for different locations.

"What's the bet that the Daedalus isn't under Atlas control?" Yang questioned, turning to her friends.

"No bet, kiddo," Qrow remarked as he approached, Harbinger in hand, Goodwitch in tow. "We're headed into the city. Stay sharp, don't let anyone get the best of you. Vale's evacuating everyone they can to Patch, we're trying to get Bullheads up to Vytal. I need you three to grab who you can and take back the landing strip.

Yang nodded, as did Ren and Nora, but the blonde quickly grabbed her uncle by the wrist. "Qrow, what happened? Everything just went crazy!"

Qrow shook his head. "Don't have time, kiddo. Do as I say."

"But Ruby and Jaune were up on Vytal!" Yang exclaimed.

"They'll be fine. Ruby knows how to handle herself, and from what I've seen of the Jaune kid, he seems like a competent fighter. Vytal isn't the worst place to be right now, they'll be fine. It's Vale that needs the help."

"Qrow…" Goodwitch spoke up, staring into the sky.

The rest of the assembled group looked up, mouths agape.

Vytal was falling.

* * *

 **Well, uh... that was a thing. This week has been a hell of a productive week for me, because Chapter 53 is already written, and I'm partway into Chapter 54.**

 **I'll just jump right into reviews!**

 **Shadow of God: Something that popped up on r/RWBY just the other day was a discussion post about Blake, and her apparent status of 'Menagerian Royalty', something that grabbed my attention. I can't remember all the points made, but it all summed up to Blake never having actually lived where her parents live currently in canon, using evidence from the show only. I bring this up because you say that Adam has suffered, and Blake has not. I'm looking forward to bringing Adam into the limelight a little, but I think I might be adjusting his ideals a little from canon. Maybe try to make him a little less 'obsessive-ex' and more 'obsessive-terrorist-leader'. We'll have to see.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: I've been making a bunch of custom Grimm behind-the-scenes lately, in preparation for the future, whatever that may entail, and it does usually mean I make a variant of the standard Grimm we've seen from Volume 1 and 2. The earliest evidence of this was the Stymphalian, as a Mistralian variant of the Nevermore, and I have a few Arctic-specific Grimm lined up for whenever we eventually get to Atlas. I may add the hydra-naga thingy as a variant, it sounds really cool.**

 **csad21: Hope this chapter held up to what you were looking forward to!**

 **AthanMortis: I think my favorite part of what happens in this chapter is that whilst the possibility was there in not only Systema, but canon too, no one seemed to expect it to play out this way.**

 **Guest: Technically, it can. I'm still not sure if I'd classify an illusion as a mental debuff, but it isn't so time-sensitive at the moment that I figure that out.**

 **dirtrevor: Runes will act along the lines of enhancements, think Witcher or Dragon Age. Though I was testing a spell-storage Rune to see if I could do something along those lines. Portable Mana Pulse at full charge, that'd be some powerful stuff.**

 **razmire: Like I've said before, I think my favorite part is that no one seemed to suspect that I would go down this route.**

 **armentho: I wasn't actually planning on having Runecrafting appear until I had most of the crafting stuff worked out, which is mostly done, but I figured it'd be alright if I tested the waters a little, and put the subskill-unlock in the rare drop tables, and threw an Ursa at Jaune. Mostly just for shits and giggles, to see if it would actually unlock or it would just be a little thing I could remove afterwards. I rolled the Runecrafting thing. So yeah, we can call it an unintended plot device. And all you've done is made me want to rewatch Last Airbender.**

 **typhonyx: Does this count as Cinder adapting?**

 **Kalbario: I guess we'll just have to wait and see if Jaune ever realizes. A shame Cinder was prepared. Girl like her strikes me as the type to have more than one plan.**

 **Drakon Hunter: Yeah, Runes'll just be set effects to apply to armor and weapons. It's a good way to upgrade an already existing weapon, and massively boosting a weapon will soon prove to be really quite expensive. Good XP though.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Because you seem to be the only person who noticed, I'll let you in on a little secret. The Divinity Seed and the Formation Seed are used to upgrade a 2nd stage Elemental to either of the two 3rd stages. As for an Angel summon, well... let's just say I've had the Summons mostly figured out since I added Callisto. I've just been biding my time, waiting to push them further.**

 **DuplicateUserName: But, as is an important point, Blake and Yang aren't on the same team. Sure, they're close, as close as everyone is with everyone else, but they aren't partners. Yang doesn't give Blake a moment to explain herself here like she does in canon because of that.**

 **jedimasterb10: "It's all coming crashing down!" You little fortune-teller you. Though what Yang was branded, I don't suppose it matters all that much anymore.**

 **Hey, that was a lot! Thanks everyone for stopping by, hope you enjoyed/were traumatized by this chapter!**

 **If you wanna support me, I have a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale, where you can get access to the entirety of the immense spreadsheet and support me at the same time. I also have a twitter fat_flying!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	53. The Sky Is Falling

**Early morning for me, that's a surprise. This chapter was written over a week ago, and 54 is mostly complete, it's rare for me to be so far ahead. Enjoy!**

 **Quick note, the previous chapter featured a lot of 'Vytal', which is wrong, as 3-13 Sniper pointed out. This chapter that has been fixed, thank you find and replace.**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid for supporting me this month!**

* * *

The System possessed a cruel sense of humor, it seemed. The notification that had popped up, alerting him of his victory in the final match, was as unappreciated as it was poorly timed. There were more, but now wasn't exactly the time.

Crocea Mors cut through blackened flesh with ease as Jaune sliced through the chest of an Ursa that had strayed too close.

"How much room do we have left?!" Jaune shouted over the noise, blade already carving a path through another Ursa.

"All the survivors are departing now! Just us Hunters left!" A voice shouted from over his left shoulder, Coco opening fire on a cluster of Beowolves as she shouted in reply.

"Get to Beacon! We need to stop the White Fang!" Jaune let out, his orders carrying over the remaining fighters in the stadium. "Do we have a way there?"

"Just one Bullhead! It's gonna be a tight fit, but I think we can do it if we jump and send the Bullhead back for a second trip!" Sun shouted, one nunchaku discharging a shotgun blast into the head of a Grimm Jaune didn't recognize, angular beak and feathered wings at odds with the quadrupedal form.

It roared at the monkey Faunus, beak snapping near his face, only to lose the entire head as Jaune hit it with a _Mana Lance_ , pinning the rapidly dissolving body to the floor.

"Then go! I'll cover your exit!" Jaune returned, wincing in pain as another Ursa slammed down on his shield, his lack of Aura making it all the more aggravating.

It proceeded to suffer a grievous wound as Jaune let loose a shot from Tranquility underneath its jaw, blowing the top of its head off, the ding of a critical hit ringing out in his mind as he placed the forestock of the shotgun against the point where his shield met the sheathed handle of Crocea Mors, quickly racking it.

A bolt of energy hit a Creep that had approached Jaune from the side, Neptune already swivelling his rifle to aim at other targets. "Not just you, Jaune! We've got your back!"

Jaune nodded a quick thanks, beginning his pace backwards. "Hold the line! Anything gets past us, let our melee take care of it!"

Ruby landed next to Jaune in a flurry of red rose petals, Crescent Rose following in an arc that cut a Beowolf into two parts. "What about Atlas, and the robots? Something happened to the Daedalus, that's where all the controls for the Knights and the Paladins are stored!"

Jaune couldn't see past the stadium to look at where he knew the aircraft was hovering, but the thought of what might've happened weighed heavy on his mind. "Do you think you can stop it?"

Ruby pulled back the bolt on her sniper, carefully loading a new magazine. "Maybe? I'm good with tech, but I don't think I'm good enough to hack into Atlas!"

Jaune shook his head. "You don't have to be! The Daedalus is compromised, all you gotta do is shut it down! Take a team, see what you can do!"

"It's either our first trip, or our second, Jaune! We've only got one transport, remember?!"

Jaune unloaded a shell into an approaching Creep, turning its head into a mess. "Go first! We can hold them off until you get back!"

Ruby was about to object when the sounds of gunfire were overwhelmed by the much louder sounds of two aircraft flying in close, the significantly beastlier M72s aboard opening fire on the horde that the Hunters were holding back.

"Hey Arc! Heard you and a few friends needed some backup!"

Despite everything, Jaune couldn't help but grin. "Never thought I'd be happy to see you again, Angel-1! You think you can take a couple Hunters up to the Daedalus?"

Angel-1, Lieutenant Slate, opened fire with his weapon. "Not going to be joining us?"

His voice barely carried over the sounds of the battlefield, but Jaune heard him just the same. "I've got to get to Beacon! I trust Ruby with my life, she's got this handled!"

Ruby gave Jaune a small smile at that, already moving to round up a group. "Coco! I need you and your team with me! We're going to take down the Knights at the source!"

The explosion that suddenly rocked the entirety of Amity threw everyone off their feet, stumbling and grasping at whatever they could to maintain their balance.

Jaune rolled, a _Spinning Mana Bullet_ tearing through the back of the head of an Ursa that had gotten too close to Scarlet in the ensuing chaos.

"What was that?!"

"They're trying to bring Amity down!" Jaune shouted, Tranquility blasting a hole in a Beowolf. "SSSN, get to Beacon, now! I'll stop them from taking down the stadium! Ruby, Daedalus!"

They moved as their training dictated they should. Jaune had effectively taken charge of the group, and they were more than obliging in following his shouted orders.

Another explosion nearly tore him off his feet if not for a hastily cast _Surface Walk_ keeping him glued to the ground as it shifted beneath him.

The Razorback, Angel Squad, Ruby and all of CFVY aboard, took off, headed towards the behemoth of an aircraft that was the destroyer Daedalus.

And the last remaining Bullhead, SSSN and a few stragglers on board, was already making its way towards Beacon.

Now all Jaune had to do was find a way beneath the stadium, and into wherever whatever it was that kept Amity floating steadily had once been.

Jaune let out a weary sigh as he decapitated what he now understood to be a Griffin.

When all was said and done, Jaune was going to need a stiff drink.

* * *

Yang needed a stiff drink.

Preferably something flavorless, or easy to drink, so that she could down a number of them and quickly forget about the horrors she was bearing witness to.

She'd never wanted to see a disemboweled corpse amongst more brutally, fatally wounded people.

She knew some of these people by name, passed them in the halls. Met some in clubs on her nights away from Beacon.

Civilians, Hunters-in-training, or just the more mundane students at Beacon, the ones that studied the less-intensive subjects.

Her attention was torn away from the carnage, eyes flickering red in the light from sparks and fire that coated Beacon's grounds, as she stared down the ones responsible for the reprehensible acts.

The Grimm on the ground were mostly dead, otherwise routed from Beacon, or presently being dealt with, but it was both the White Fang and the hacked Atlesian Knights and Paladins that were proving to be the more troublesome foes.

Qrow and Goodwitch had left, headed to the city, leaving the currently leaderless RRYN in charge of rallying the forces of good left in the academy they'd once called home.

Now, of course, it was aflame, smoke drifting into the air to add a dramatic effect to the Grimm-infested sky.

Yang punched a White Fang soldier in the face, her temper exploding as she did so, hair ablaze. "You think you cowards can walk into our school and we won't have anything to say about it!" She shouted, throwing the soldier aside. "Think again!"

They were surrounded on all sides, now. Easily more than a dozen guns aimed at the three of them, the fleshy fingers frantic and panicked, the metallic ones unmoving.

"Yeah!" Nora joined in from beside her teammate, hammer poised and ready to swing. "You're all just bullies! Evil bullies!"

"There were Faunus in the crowds. Faunus in the academy. Faunus in the city. Do you truly not care about your cause?" Ren asked, his voice doing nothing to mask the quiet fury that both Yang and Nora understood wholeheartedly.

Some of the White Fang shared glances, but others simply gestured with their guns. "Put your weapons down! We'll let you surrender!"

Another White Fang soldier spoke up. "Urk!"

Many of the White Fang present seemed confused by their fellow terrorist's proclamation, only to watch in eye-widening fear as someone they recognized wrapped a ribbon around their weapons, her foot meeting their faces in what could only be called a rather powerful kick.

Another person they recognized froze them in place, her thin blade proving exactly how sharp it was as she propelled herself in a pattern that had her disable the surrounding Atlesian Knights.

A third person they recognized, if only from the media, very efficiently eliminated the rest from being a threat, their guns bending and warping in their hands as they tried to return fire, only to receive some rather painful and yet well-deserved injuries that took them out of the fighting completely.

"Blake, Weiss, Pyrrha! I thought you guys were up on Amity with Jaune and Ruby!" Yang exclaimed, giving one of the disabled White Fang soldiers a brutal jab to the side of his head, breaking him free of the ice he'd been trapped in at the expense of knocking him out completely.

Pyrrha shook her head. "No, we were in Vale, in a cafe, having a nice evening."

"Shame these degenerates had to ruin it," Weiss began. "I trust you don't have a problem with me calling them that now, Blake?"

Blake didn't respond immediately, instead wrapping her ribbon around the throat of one of the half-frozen terrorists and pulling them free, resting the blade of Gambol Shroud against their Aura-less neck. "Where is he. Talk."

The terrorist coughed and spluttered, and Blake didn't like that answer, instead placing her heel against their hand, pressing down. "Don't make me ask again."

"In… Beacon… don't know… where…" The terrorist coughed out, and Blake kicked hard, the final blow that was needed to silence the man.

"We need to work together, get as many people out of Beacon as we can. We can't hold this place, no matter how hard we try," Weiss spoke, trying to regain at least some control of the situation.

"I have somewhere I must go. I'll be back as soon as I can, but I must leave. Alone," Pyrrha spoke up, and Weiss lost any semblance of control she might've had.

"What?! Were you even listening to me?" Weiss asked, as the forewarnings of panic began to set in on her face.

"I'm sorry, Weiss, but this is a responsibility entrusted to me by Headmaster Ozpin. I can't disappoint him, especially not now."

"Then I'm going with you."

Yang's voice brooked no argument, or at least it should have.

"No, Yang. You can't!" Pyrrha objected. Would have continued to object, too, if Yang didn't interrupt.

"I don't care about whatever the hell it is you wanna tell me. I'm coming with you, and nothing is going to stop me. Shut up and go, I'm right behind you."

Pyrrha opened her mouth, considered her options, and promptly shut it, already moving away from the group.

Weiss let out a frustrated sigh, running one hand through her hair. "Alright, then, that leaves the four of us. We need to help everyone we can, and we do that by doing what we do best. Fighting. Where do we go, any ideas?"

Blake turned and pointed over her shoulder. "We should probably go help Sun and his team. They've just landed, and we need to consolidate."

Nora hefted Magnhild, Ren reloaded StormFlower, Blake wrapped Gambol Shroud's ribbon around her forearm, and Weiss let out a sigh as she spun Myrtenaster's chamber. "It's always Paladins with us, isn't it?"

* * *

The inside of Amity was like a catacomb, interlocking bridges, catwalks and hallways leading any which way they felt like, and that was when Amity was right-side-up.

As it was currently drifting through the Valean sky on a sharp incline, Jaune found it even more confusing. At least _Surface Walk_ allowed him to take it like it was at a normal angle, but even still, when there were active Atlesian Knights standing on the walls, it did make it a little disorienting.

At least they weren't massive threats, the AK-200s. Sure, they were pretty accurate, and he was really low on Aura still, but they didn't possess anything but metal plating, and Mana-based projectiles punched through that the same as anything he'd fired at before. Grimm or Robot, it was pretty apparent that Mana was still effective.

There were no more White Fang aboard Amity, at least. They'd fled, that much was certain, unwilling to stay aboard the floating island as it neared its end.

Jaune had to stop it, somehow. There had to be a way to halt the fall, or just even out the stabilizing equipment so that, despite it hitting the ground, it would be easy to repair and send back up.

As it was, Jaune still didn't quite know where he was going, but he had an idea of which direction.

Labeled signs directed him towards the engineering deck, and he followed them quickly, shield raised as he moved.

He didn't get to see the inside of the engineering deck until after he'd taken out the three AK-200s at the entrance, but once he stepped inside, he stared wide-eyed at the expanse of machinery in front of him.

Two of five immense pillars, crackling with Dust sparks, smoke spewing forth, looked unsalvageable. The other three, though, pistons pumping away, venting exhaust and straining as hard as they could, kept Amity afloat, if just.

The three bombs ticking down on the mechanical pillars would soon put a stop to that, though, if Jaune didn't at least try and do something.

Jaune moved with fluidity he did not feel, already swinging with Crocea Mors at the Knights, his blade grating against metal as it cut through.

He had to move fast, faster than this. He didn't have a good grip on how long the bombs had left on their timers, but it couldn't be that long.

The room had, at one point, held twenty AK-200s, all standing guard. In less than a minute, Jaune had cut through them all with sword and magic, leaving only smoking shrapnel and shattered circuitry.

And yet he paid that no mind, instead wracking his brain in a singular attempt to figure out exactly how to disarm a bomb.

Not something he was really prepared for.

Jaune lifted the plastic case on the nearest explosive device, letting out a small sigh as the mess of tangled cables and capsules full of Dust greeted him. He'd seen more organisation in his room back home. Which was to say, none at all.

Where did you even start with defusing a bomb? It wasn't something they'd covered in Beacon, and he doubted it was anything other than a special elective in their fourth year. And even then that was a maybe.

A quick check lead Jaune to notice the small red diode display, the numbers both bright and terrifying.

"Okay Jaune, less than a minute, figure out how to defuse three bombs. Easy, right?"

It was not. Jaune was, in a word, screwed.

Then an idea, one that was so foolhardy that he couldn't believe he was about to try it.

Jaune placed the plastic case on the bomb once more, lifted the entire thing, and placed it in his inventory.

He did the same with the other two, leaving fifteen seconds to spare.

Then, he waited.

Either he was about to explode, or he'd just paused reality on the bombs.

"Five, four, three, two…" Jaune said aloud, wincing as he reached the final second.

Everything went black.

To Jaune, a single moment passed.

Jaune opened his eyes, surprised to find that not only was he alive, but his left arm was broken in three places. Which hurt. A not-so-insignificant amount, in fact.

"Good news, I didn't explode. Bad news…"

He wasn't entirely sure what the bad news was, but looking out what had once been a window that was now full of dirt, it occurred to him.

Amity had hit the ground, and nowhere near as hard as it would have without the stabilizers.

Less bad news, more… mediocre news. He could accept that.

His arm was already healing, it had been since before he'd awoken. Obviously his injuries had been worse, but he hadn't died, so at least there was an upside.

He ducked underneath a bent girder, grabbing Tranquility from where it had fallen off of his belt, stowing it in place as he checked himself.

He was wary when checking the three bombs that sat in his inventory, but they remained dormant. As long as he didn't take them out of his inventory, he'd be fine.

He hoped.

Now all he had to do was get to Beacon.

* * *

Ruby wished she could have said that she, CFVY and Angel Squad all landed atop the Daedalus, put a stop to whoever or whatever it was that was causing so many problems, returned to their aircraft, and flown to Beacon to assist in the cleanup of this horrendous attack.

What actually happened was their Razorback was shot out of the air, and they had bailed out.

Rather, CFVY and Ruby had bailed. The leader of Angel, who'd briefly introduced himself as Slate, had stayed behind with his squad and the pilot, planning on riding the damaged aircraft to the ground.

Then, through a series of unfortunate circumstances that had to be one in more than a million, the entirety of CFVY had been swept aside from the top of the Daedalus by a swarm of massive Nevermores that had flown through, barely missing the red reaper.

Which meant that Ruby was now alone atop the deck of the Daedalus, wind buffeting her hair every which way as she struggled to keep her footing.

"Well well, Red! Had a feeling you'd show up eventually! Not bringing your little boy-toy?"

Roman Torchwick, of course it was. Ruby frowned, slamming the sharp end of Crescent Rose into the metal deck, holding her weapon firm. "You can't think you'll get away with this, Torchwick!"

The wind extinguished Roman's cigar, much to the man's distaste, allowing a gust to carry the entire thing out of his hand. "Get away with what, Red? I'm fighting for my life up here, I was locked up the entire time. Neo, on the other hand…"

Pink and brown met silver as Neo rushed in from behind Roman, already closing the distance between the Huntress-in-training and the pint-sized assassin, blade narrowly missing piercing Ruby's chest as she flipped atop Crescent Rose, pulling it out of the metal and firing to gain some more distance.

Neo was still moving, however, a vicious smirk on her face, one that Ruby found herself disliking intensely. The blade, steady as ever, threatened to puncture her Aura, leave her bleeding out, and Ruby wasn't going to have that.

A burst of speed that not even Neo could keep up with had Ruby launch at Roman, winding back with Crescent Rose.

Roman nearly fell over, surprised as he stumbled backwards, foot catching the edge of a mangled plate of armor, barely ducking out of the way of a blow that would have removed his head, Aura or no.

The man let out a whistle, rolling to his feet next to his partner. "Damn, Red! What's got you so upset? Surely it couldn't have been anything I've done?"

Ruby didn't want to reply, didn't want to give him anything to use against her, but against her better judgement, the words poured out. "I had to kill one of my friends to save people!"

She roared it, voice cracking under the pressure, both physical and emotional.

"Don't you dare think any less of the tragedy you had a hand in, Torchwick! This is your fault!"

She rushed again, a burst of speed and rose petals, but Roman was ready for it, the edge of his cane hooking around the haft of Crescent Rose and flinging it, and the girl holding it, aside, nearly sending Ruby off the aircraft into the waiting jaws of the circling Griffons below.

The blade of Crescent Rose squealed in that metal-on-metal way as she hung off the edge of the Daedalus, trying her absolute damndest to keep her grip.

And then Neo leaned in close, that smirk still on her face.

"Finish her, Neo. We've wasted enough time here already," Roman said from above, and the smirk doubled in intensity, eyes growing a kind of manic look that terrified Ruby all the more.

The blade ever so slowly trailed out of the parasol, spinning in the mute murderer's hand.

That was it! The parasol!

Neo lifted the blade, ready to plunge it into Ruby's hand, when the red-cloaked girl used what little force she could and reached forward with a burst of speed, her hand finding the button.

And, in a single moment, Neo's face contorted into an expression of surprise as her parasol opened, and the wind whisked her away, soundlessly.

Roman looked just as surprised when Ruby did clamber back atop the Daedalus, weapon poised and ready to strike.

"Red, did you just… I don't… how…"

Ruby chambered a round. "Shut up."

* * *

"Ms Nikos, good to see you in one piece. Ms Xiao Long, an unexpected surprise."

Ozpin's greeting was curt, fingers rapidly tapping an asymmetrical beat on his cane.

"Headmaster. I've come to accept your offer," Pyrrha said, standing firm.

The relief that Ozpin wore on his expression was palpable as he quickly moved towards the elevator. "Good. Please, Ms Nikos, Ms Xiao Long, follow me."

The elevator ride was silent, tense, and Yang felt truly claustrophobic for the first time. "What's happening?"

Ozpin shook his head at the blonde's question. "Not now, Ms Xiao Long, we don't have time. Just be on your guard, you cannot let anything get past."

Yang glanced to Pyrrha, yet the redhead wouldn't meet her eyes. "Pyr-"

The doors slid open, the elevator dinging, and the three stepped out, one in startled silence, the other two moving quickly.

"Ms Nikos, if you'll step into the empty pod, I'll begin the procedure."

"Pod? Procedure?" Yang asked, the cavernous room serving only to alienate her further. "What the hell is happening?"

Pyrrha didn't answer, stepping into the pod and taking a deep breath as the hatch sealed.

This was the point that Yang noticed the second pod, a tan woman inside it.

"Ozpin, what the hell!?" Yang asked again, but Ozpin paid her no mind, already initiating the procedure.

"Ms Xiao Long, please, do not let anything get past you!"

Yang turned to the elevator, steeling her gaze. Temptation lingered over her shoulder, concern dictating that she should find out what was happening to Pyrrha.

Instead, she held firm, Ember Celica at the ready.

The elevator dinged.

The doors slid open.

Cinder Fall, wreathed in flame, eyes burning bright, stepped out, a victorious smirk adorning her face.

"Hello, Ozpin."

* * *

 **Cinder throwing all pretenses aside, this oughta be fun. Let me move onto this week's reviews.**

 **Shadow of God: You're thinking along similar lines as I am, so you aren't too far off.**

 **lordrednight: Was it worth the price you paid, selling your soul for a pun?**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: Technically the King Taijitu is two-headed, but it's that weird kind of two-headed, where each end is a head. Don't know if that counts either. If you ever have a suggestion for a Grimm just send me a PM or review with it, I'll be sure to look it over. Same goes for anyone else.**

 **armentho: Jaune is still yet to end the encounter, which means no results, which means no boosts, or stat increases, or XP. That may or may not bode poorly.**

 **typhonyx: I don't want to spoil anything from the next chapter, but I think I've got Adam's character at least partially nailed down, and it does fall in line with what a lot of y'all have been saying, which is good, because that means we agree.**

 **DuplicateUserName: Now all I have to do is figure out a way to make a working Penny summon, that's going to take some work. Hoo boy.**

 **Drakon Hunter: It's more accurate to say he withdrew all of her Soul and condensed it into a Soul Orb. She was out of Aura, as evident with Ruby's shot landing. I'd say it would work, but the subject would have to be willing, and it would completely drain them of their soul. A strong no-no, in my opinion.**

 **razmire: Over twenty-five thousand RWBY fics written and I'm the first to use an idea? That almost seems mind-boggling.**

 **WyattMoore: What can I say, I specialize in various kinds of dramatic death. You need someone to connect to only to instantly die, I'm your guy.**

 **Pokemon5191: Jaune already has Gravity for his spells, along with Lightning, and I have a few unlock phrases set for the other four base elements. All he has to do is achieve them.**

 **3-13 Sniper: Once again, thanks for the heads-up. I really appreciate it.**

 **SirenAtlantica: I'm glad you enjoyed reading that, I enjoyed writing it. Which is a little messed-up, but eh. I only know one way to emotional gut-punch, and it's with meaningless civilian casualties!**

 **jedimasterb10: Now I just have Sidious's "Do it!" playing in my head on repeat. I should rewatch the Star Wars franchise, it's a good way to kill time and avoid writing the end to the next chapter.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Welcome to the thought-processes of my mind for the past few weeks especially. Decisions, decisions, decisions. As for the Summons, I've been writing descriptions for all of the potential summons and their potential evolutions for the past week now. It's getting bigger and bigger with every passing day.**

 **TheB: To be fair, we've seen, in canon, Cinder looking at complete diagnostic details and blueprints of Penny. Saying her remote function, and let's be honest, you don't make a sentient robot without a remote function, can be hacked is a little bit of a stretch, but one backed with evidence and plot-based momentum.**

 **PillagerOfNorm: I guess you'll just have to keep reading to find out :D**

 **ice cream of the gods: You know, that's not too far off. I need to not rewatch the entire MCU, that's too much of a time investment. That'd kill me, I think.**

 **And that does it for reviews this week! Thank you all for rocking up!**

 **I have a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale and a Twitter I rarely touch fat_flying!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	54. Overwhelming

**Man I struggled with this chapter, trying to figure out exactly how to communicate what was happening. Took me a lot of effort just to bring myself to put words to the page, so if it is a little dip in quality I apologize for that. Enjoy!**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid for supporting me this month!**

* * *

Jaune was moving through the Emerald Forest with speed, thankful for every gift he'd been given by the System that allowed him to do so.

 _Sprint_ plus _Flash Step_ let him move really, really fast, and whilst he didn't exactly have a concrete number, it was fast enough that the cliffs of Beacon were already coming into view beyond the undergrowth.

He was definitely not even going to bother with finding the staircase he'd made, instead _Leaping_ up and casting _Surface Walk_ , still _Sprinting_ at top speed.

If anyone had been watching, it would have been impressive. However, alone as he was in the Emerald Forest, there hadn't been, so he resolved himself to instead focus on what lay ahead.

Which just so happened to be what he reached.

Yet another battlefield, this time full of robots, White Fang and Grimm in equal measure, exchanging fire with people he knew.

People he needed to help, at that moment.

He led off with a _Gravity Infused Mana Blast_ , launching a number of hostiles into the air, where he opened fire with _Spinning Mana Bullets_ , uncaring who he hit with what. He was beyond angry, now, gritting his teeth as he swiveled with his shield, deflecting the blast of buckshot from a very dedicated White Fang soldier that soon found himself with a large sword wound in his chest as Jaune moved onwards, a _Lightning Infused Mana Pulse_ halting the advance of a Paladin as he darted underneath its legs, Crocea Mors glinting as it sliced through a variety of what Jaune could only assume were important conduits.

Sun nodded thanks as Jaune continued to move, lending his help wherever he could, until he finally reached Blake and Weiss, sweat-drenched as he was.

"Good to see you guys still kicking," Jaune remarked, letting out an exhausted pant as he quickly conjured a _Mana Field_ , a Paladin's missile splashing against the outer layers and shattering one, a plume of fire and smoke wafting over them.

"Nice to see you too," Weiss replied in kind, creating a Glyph beneath a nearby cluster of Knights and tossing them into the air, where Blake effectively treated them like clay Nevermore.

"Where's Ruby?" Blake asked, stepping within Jaune's _Mana Field_ , reloading Gambol Shroud.

Jaune grimaced. "Hopefully taking down the Daedalus with CFVY and Angel Squad."

Weiss replicated his expression. "Hate to be the bearer of bad news, but CFVY practically fell out of the sky a couple minutes ago, riding Nevermore. No Ruby."

Jaune swore, dropping the _Mana Field_ to fire a _Mana Lance_ at a Griffon, pinning one of its legs to the floor as Sage beheaded it, giving Jaune a nod of thanks from the silent man.

"And the Knights and Paladins are still active. Meaning that Ruby failed," Jaune began, fury written into every inch of his body.

"Or she just hasn't managed to figure out how to turn them off yet. Have faith," Blake interrupted. "Right now, we need to focus."

Jaune allowed himself to calm down somewhat, nodding to his team. "Where's Pyrrha?"

Blake and Weiss exchanged a glance. "She and Yang went to Ozpin, Pyrrha wouldn't tell us why."

"Damn it. Too many things to manage," Jaune let out, and he could tell his team were commiserating with his sentiments. "We need to just start clearing the place one step at a time. The more things we can take out, the better off we'll be. Blake, take the east, near the cafeteria. Weiss, go west, to the main courtyard. Take as many people as you think you need."

Blake and Weiss both nodded, already moving, voices carrying over the battlefield as they requisitioned people to go with them.

Jaune turned to face Beacon and the Headmaster's tower with a long-suffering sigh escaping his lips.

The sole Ursa left in the area quickly wished it had been anywhere else.

* * *

The cafeteria was on fire. This was not, in fact, fine.

Blake shoved hard against one of the doors, trying in vain to open it fully, instead having it smack against a cluster of tables and get stuck, leaving only a slight gap.

Not too significant a problem for her, she was flexible and lithe enough to fit through, but it was more of a problem when you had to somehow get back out with potentially injured people in your arms.

' _Deal with it when it comes up. First, check for survivors.'_

Her thoughts were right, and she followed them quickly, shoving what looked like a burning bench out of the way, Gambol Shroud still held at the ready.

"Anyone alive?!" She called out, and her answer came in the form of a muffled scream that found itself quickly silenced.

Blake swiveled in that direction, holding her weapon steady in both hands, finger on the trigger.

Nothing. Not even a whimper.

Another scream, quickly silenced, this time to her left, and she spun, squinting, trying to see through the smoke.

A hazy image, nothing concrete, a figure standing over another.

Then a flash of red.

Blake barely reacted in time to get Gambol Shroud's sheath in front of herself, the blow sending her backwards in a slide as her legs gave out underneath her.

Amber eyes widened in shock and fear as the figure stepped out of the smoke, red blade gleaming in the firelight.

"Adam…" Blake let out, her voice carrying so much emotion that it was hard to figure out which was the most prevalent.

Gambol Shroud fired off two shots that Adam blocked without much effort, still approaching silently.

Blake scrambled to her feet, swapping to her more melee-oriented form as Gambol Shroud twisted and melded in her hands, blade springing up, her arms moving it to block the sudden slash that Adam delivered, blades sparking as the red blade seared and screeched against the black blade.

Then, all of a sudden, Adam pulled away, stepping back.

"I must say, my love, I'm so disappointed in you."

Blake nearly recoiled in visible disgust, only just managing to keep her attention on the man in front of her.

"You ran, my love, not just from me, but from the White Fang. Is this what you have become? A coward?"

Blake darted forwards, Gambol Shroud cutting through air until it met Wilt, the glowing red blade barely quivering as Blake strained against it. "You're killing innocent humans and faunus, Adam! How is this equality?!"

"We were destined to light the fires of revolution, my love. That takes sacrifice, no conflict is ever without bloodshed. You should know, you should understand. The things you did, for the White Fang, for me, they were just the fuel, but this, this is the spark!"

Blake kicked her leg out, booted heel meeting Adam's shin and sending him a step back, enough that she managed to capitalize, darting underneath his retaliatory swing and slashing, only to find Wilt once again in the way.

"I will bring the White Fang to a greater glory than ever seen before, my love, but first… I have to punish you."

All Blake saw was a flicker of red.

* * *

If Weiss was being truly, completely honest with herself, she would have said that she really disliked the fact that she always seemed to be pitted against large mechanical enemies. Myrtenaster wasn't exactly designed to puncture armor plating, and there wasn't much Dust could do to stop four-and-a-half tons of metal and death if it set its central processing unit on killing you.

That didn't mean she was going to give up, though, far from it. Not only were there people that needed her to carry on and fight, but it would also be a massive wound to her pride, giving up in the face of adversity that just so happened to be powered by stolen goods, stolen from her very own company she was set to inherit.

Weiss was just glad that she wasn't the only one in the main courtyard to fight these things. The Knights didn't prove to be that much of a challenge on their own, and even in squads they weren't the greatest threats, but it was the Paladin's that really proved that Atlas could and most likely would hold their own if another Kingdom decided to declare war.

Of course, they weren't under Atlesian control right now, and that wasn't exactly a beneficial situation, but that didn't quite matter right now. What did matter was taking out anything potentially hostile in Beacon, so they could use it as a staging ground and as a secure foothold against onslaught, so they could make the push back into Vale and clear the rest of the invading Grimm and White Fang, assuming Ruby eventually succeeded in taking down the Daedalus's systems.

Weiss moved as fast as she could, the shining tip of Myrtenaster revealing itself through the back of a nearby Knight, before a glyph propelled the white-themed heiress away, the speed boost allowing her to cut through another two of the robots before she slid to a halt, others joining the fray, bolstered by her momentum, blades, blunt weapons and guns hitting their marks as they cleared the area.

Three Paladins stood at the other end of the courtyard, already spinning to face the new group of hostiles, uncaring about where their large mechanical feet planted themselves, one such Paladin accidentally staining the underside of its leg the kind of red nothing really wanted to be painted in.

Gunfire lit them up, bullets pelting the armor plating, denting and scratching at the paintwork, but none of them faltered, their approach instead garnering more speed.

And then, all of a sudden, the Paladins had arrived, and a fist hit Nora hard enough to knock her flat, another hitting Ren with an equal amount of force.

The other Hunters scattered as the approach, once unified, became anything but, evolving into what could effectively be called a brawl.

Gunfire was ineffective, Weiss couldn't form anywhere near enough ice to freeze them in place, and even Yatsuhashi, the largest and presumably strongest of the assembled group, was forced onto the ground underneath the weight of the fist that hit him, his attempted block with his sword, Fulcrum, not proving to be enough to prevent the sheer force that the impact had.

Coco wasn't doing much better, nor was Fox, but as Weiss watched carefully, looking for an opening in the Paladin's nigh-impenetrable defense, she noticed something far stranger.

Velvet, hand outstretched, stepping out into the middle of the courtyard, already being surrounded.

Weiss opened her mouth, words of warning dying on the tip of her tongue as Velvet began to glow.

No, that wasn't right, it was more apt to say that the box on Velvet's back glowed, a brilliant bright blue projecting itself out into her hand.

Weiss watched dumbfounded as the cyan outline of Crescent Rose formed in Velvet's hand, and her dumbfoundedness increased as Velvet then pulled off what could only be called a direct copy of Ruby's own combat style, replicating it without pause or issue.

And then her weapon switched, becoming a copy of Weiss's own, Myrtenaster glowing that brilliant cyan as Velvet deflected a hit with a bright blue explosion from the tip of the faux-rapier, already switching her weapon.

What followed could only really be explained at a later date to Weiss, because she was barely able to follow as Velvet switched between easily twenty more weapons, some familiar, some not.

And then Velvet ran out of weapons.

Weiss's eyes widened in shock as Velvet reached for a weapon that never came, the surprise on her face evident up until it warped into one of pain as a gigantic robot fist hit her in the chest, driving the air from her lungs and sending her slamming into the ground.

The group opened fire, trying to save their ally, but it was in vain, the Paladins, whilst damaged, still able to take the rounds that the assembled Hunters were spitting out.

Weiss felt herself moving, glyphs underneath her feet propelling her forwards at a rate she'd never reached before, Myrtenaster in hand.

Something clicked, something within her, and Weiss lifted her arms, hoping to at least save Velvet from probable death.

All Weiss saw was white.

* * *

Red moved fast. It was almost impossible to keep track of her, with how she darted around, a blur of rose petals left in her wake, that giant oversized gardening tool of hers proving to be a menace on multiple levels.

Whoever had combined a giant scythe and a sniper rifle had to be certifiably insane, and considering how many legitimately insane people Roman knew that would balk at the idea, that had to say at least a little about the state of mind of Hunters as a whole, not just Red.

"Damn it, Red, would you stay still for one second so I can get this out of the way?!" Roman shouted, launching a bright red flare out of the end of Melodic Cudgel, the hooked end swiping it out of the air and morphing it into a wide slash.

Ruby took the hit to the chest, sending her skidding backwards, the blade of Crescent Rose carving a screechingly loud rent in the surface of the Daedalus.

And yet she grit her teeth, already moving again, looking for that one opening, the one time she could capitalize on.

"You know-" Roman began, grunting as he deflected Ruby once more. "You've got spirit, Red! Most people would have gone and given up by now, or at least succumbed, but you, you keep going! It's a shame this is the real world!"

He punctuated his statement with a cruel kick, bypassing anything Ruby had expected and sending her rolling, a groan of pain escaping her lips.

Roman was on her in an instant, another kick to the stomach loosening her grip on Crescent Rose and driving the wind out of her lungs, leaving her gasping.

"The real world is cold, Red! The real world doesn't care about spirit!" Roman spat out, delivering a crushing blow with the end of Melodic Cudgel, having wound back like teeing-up at golf.

Ruby let out another groan of pain, but even still, she kicked out, her boot meeting Roman's shin with enough force to make the man stumble back a step, giving her space to crawl, even if it was much slower than she'd hoped.

Roman let out a laugh. "You're pitiful, Red! You wanna be a hero so bad? Die like every other Hunter in history!"

He aimed, the end of Melodic Cudgel popping open. "As for me, I'm gonna do what I do best! Lie, cheat, steal, and survive!"

Roman pulled the trigger.

All Ruby saw was white.

* * *

Jaune stumbled into the inside of Beacon, arm bleeding heavily behind his shield.

One Ursa had died quickly. The flock of Griffons that had swooped down from above, not so much. They'd proven to be a little more difficult to kill, and Jaune had been low on Aura even before them.

Now, he was slowly healing, but it wasn't fast enough, and his Aura regen was even slower. He was most definitely not at his best, but that didn't matter. He had to help, any and every way he could.

He staggered into the awaiting elevator shaft, _Surface Walk_ carrying him down to the bottom, where the actual elevator sat.

It took no time at all to tear the emergency door open and drop in, eyes flicking up to survey the cavernous room.

He took in everything at once, eyes widening as he did so.

Yang, laid out in the corner, body charred and smoking, eyes closed.

Pyrrha, sealed inside a glass container, screaming in soundless agony.

Another woman, tan skin and covered in bandages to protect her modesty, eyes rolled into the back of her head, back arched, mouth open in similar agony.

Ozpin's cane laid out in a pile of smoking ashes.

And a woman clad in a red dress, glass bow drawn, arrow nocked.

There was nothing Jaune could do, the arrow loosed before he could even fully absorb the situation, the glass projectile penetrating the first chamber, puncturing the heart of the tan woman, silencing those soundless screams for good.

The glow of energy that had been passing between the encased woman and Pyrrha quickly severed, leaving his partner unconscious inside her container.

Instead, the energy redirected, flowing up the outstretched arm of the red-clad woman, the amber glow radiating heat.

Jaune moved as fast as he could, Crocea Mors arcing through the air, sending a _Mana Slash_ towards the woman, who turned and simply blasted it away with a torrent of flame, knocking him down to the ground, Aura broken, skin bubbling and popping under the intense heat of the fire.

Jaune roared in pain, but continued to move, hands already healing as he maintained his grip.

The woman let loose another torrent of flame, but this time Jaune was ready for it, darting to the side and continuing his approach, Crocea Mors angled for attack.

His blade met hers, the bow having split into two glass swords, somehow stronger than he'd expected.

Even blade-locked as they were, neither of the fighters were without options, and if it wasn't for the horrifying truths of what was happening he would have let out a laugh as he and the red-clad woman let out a burst of power, Jaune's _Mana Blast_ negating the blast of flame that would have turned his entire body into char-grilled pork.

Of course, Jaune wasn't as lucky the second time, as the sheer heat that the woman seemed to naturally radiate increased a hundred-fold, and he had to dart away, already feeling his weapons heat up, skin searing.

He couldn't even get close to her without starting to cook. That was a bad sign.

He needed more information, and so he _Observed_ the woman.

And promptly paled.

 **[Cinder Fall]**

 **[Scattered Embers, Maiden of Fall]**

 **[Level 110]**

He had one single idea, something that was going to be incredibly risky.

It was the only way they'd get out of here alive.

Jaune sheathed Crocea Mors and held out his hand.

 _Stasis_ flowed from his fingertips, and he watched as Cinder Fall was wreathed in a cable of glowing Mana, sealing around her and reducing the very color of her.

It was like looking at a black and white photo that had everything but the woman digitally colored. Cinder Fall was grayscale and unmoving, her eyes unfocused.

Jaune didn't know how long he had, so he moved as fast as he could, lifting Yang over his shoulder and quickly smashing the case that covered the unconscious Pyrrha, hefting her over his other shoulder.

He _Flash Stepped_ over to the elevator and quickly hit the button for the ground floor, watching in fear as the _Stasis_ began to wear off, the color filtering back into Cinder's form.

One eye, the only part that was free, strayed to stare at him, amber locking with blue.

The doors shut.

All Jaune could see was gray.

* * *

Blake felt her form change as she ducked sideways, already angling Gambol Shroud towards Adam, her blade carving through the air as Adam slashed through the shadowy projection she'd left behind, the bull-horned man leaning backwards to allow Blake's weapon to pass harmlessly in front of him, his fist burying itself in her stomach and breaking her into smoke as she swung at him from behind.

Adam knew it was coming, though, how could he not? His finger squeezed the trigger on Blush, the round hitting Blake before she could react, the hit hard on her Aura, sending her backwards as the terrorist leader turned, a smirk on his face.

"You never learn, my love. You can't hope to defeat me here."

Blake nearly found herself baring her teeth, catching herself. "You'll lose this, Adam. This attack will be a failure, and all it will bring is more hatred to the faunus!"

Adam dropped his smirk, sheathing Wilt within Blush. "Then perhaps more of the cowards will understand the hatred our emboldened brethren face, and push harder! The humans will never stop, Blake, surely you must understand. They will not stop until they kill every last faunus!"

Adam was on her in an instant, hand on the grip of Wilt. "We must kill them all first, Blake, or they will do the same to us!"

Blake's eyes widened as Wilt carved through the air at speeds she couldn't comprehend, and she barely managed to get Gambol Shroud in front of it, not that it mattered all that much.

Blake felt her Aura shatter, her body glowing purple for all of a split-second as she hit the ground, a cough escaping her lips.

"You have two options, my love. You can do what you do best and run, or you can rejoin me. Help me tear down the human reign, destroy them, before they destroy us."

Blake scrambled backwards. "You're insane, Adam."

Adam shook his head slowly, looking at the ground. "Then you've made your choice, my love. Run. It's all you ever do."

Blake clambered to her feet, backing up slowly. "You can still stop this, Adam."

"No. I won't. Run, my love. Hide. Know that I will find you again, once all this is over."

Blake wanted nothing more than to run. She wanted nothing more than to get out of the hellhole that was the cafeteria.

She was out of Aura, and Adam hadn't even tried. She couldn't beat him.

Blake turned.

Adam's blade protruded from her chest, searingly hot against flesh.

Blake let out a scream of pain, dropping to the ground and clutching at the opened wound, trying her best to keep her blood on the inside.

"You should have run faster, my love."

Adam stepped back into the smoke, a small smile on his lips.

* * *

One moment Ruby had been staring down the barrel of Melodic Cudgel, Roman's finger pressing down on the trigger.

The next she was opening her eyes to the flickering white Aura of General James Ironwood standing between the two, his revolver pointed directly at the thief-turned-terrorist.

Ironwood looked no worse for wear after effectively tanking the shot that would have definitely put Ruby out of commission, at the least.

"I knew I should have interrogated you myself. What are you getting out of this, Torchwick?"

Torchwick stepped back, sliding a new shell into the handle of the cane in a smooth flourish, even as he contemplated answering the Atlesian General.

His smirk dimmed somewhat. "You think I knew what they were planning? I'm not like the rest of you stubborn fools, I saw the tide coming. Either way, she was going to achieve what she wanted. I just made sure I wouldn't be on the losing side. Yours."

He gave his cane one more spin, flipping it around his wrist, grabbing it, pointing it at the General. "So, what'll it be, Ironwood? Stop me from killing little Red here, or stop all of your little puppets from killing the rest of Vale?"

Ironwood answered by pointing his revolver at the bridge of the Daedalus and pulling the trigger.

A second passed, the echo of the gunshot ringing out over the war-torn battlefield of Vale.

And then, all of a sudden, an explosion rang out from within the bridge, plumes of fire and smoke escaping the shattered glass.

Ironwood spun the revolver's chamber, leveling it at Torchwick once more. "I'm not like the Vale council, Torchwick. You'll find no mercy from me."

Ruby could do nothing but watch.

* * *

Weiss stood still, arms quivering, outstretched in front of her, Myrtenaster held in the only way she could to protect Velvet.

The blow never came. At least, it hadn't hit her. Weiss opened her eyes, looking up at the mech.

The Paladin stood straining against a giant glowing suit of armor, massive greatsword held in one hand, the other braced against the tip of the glowing blade.

Weiss stared in shock as the suit of armor pushed, shoving the mech back, and slashed down, cutting the Paladin in half, straight down the middle, leaving only sparking circuitry and torn armor in its wake.

Another Paladin swung, metal fist arcing towards the newest threat that had quite literally stepped out of a large glowing Glyph, only to meet a bright platemail-clad hand, clamping down, crushing the powerful mechanical fist underneath.

The third Paladin proved to be too much for it, and by proxy Weiss, to handle, the gunfire shredding the glowing construct, putting it down on one knee, already beginning to crack like broken glass.

Thankfully, she wasn't the only one present.

So many people assaulted the last remaining Paladin, cutting and carving through armor and circuits until all that remained was a smoking carcass covered in rent metal and sparking components.

Already there were more, though, and even as the suit of armor collapsed, Weiss found herself surrounded. Knights, armed and aiming, joined by another cluster of Paladins that obviously hadn't gotten the memo.

And then, all of a sudden, the eerie red glows the robots emitted went dark, guns hitting the ground as limbs went slack, bodies hitting the ground.

Even the Paladins, folding themselves back up into their more compact transport forms.

The group collectively looked around, relief palpable as Nora gave one of the Knights a tentative poke with the end of her hammer, shrugging to herself.

Of course, as with any piece of good news, there is always bad news to follow.

They all spun, eyes widening, as the main tower of Beacon was suddenly engulfed in a pillar of flame that threatened to touch the very sky, illuminating the evening and basking those nearby in a heat that was nigh-unbearable.

And out of the very edge of the flames came Jaune stumbling, two unconscious friends strung over his shoulders.

Weiss moved quickly, as did many of the others, Ren taking the severely wounded Yang from him as Velvet quickly took Pyrrha, the cluster of people growing in number as Sun and his team approached from the side, the tallest member of the team gently carrying Blake in his arms.

Too much to take in all at once, Weiss compartmentalized, focusing on her one conscious teammate. "What happened?"

Jaune shook his head frantically. "I don't know. Ozpin's dead, I think. Cinder, that economics professor from Haven, she's responsible. Her real name is Cinder Fall."

Weiss paled at the news. "The Headmaster..? No…"

Jaune was still talking, and she refocused. "Pyrhha was in some kind of chamber, and there was another woman in another, unconscious. It looked like Ozpin was in the middle of transferring something between them before Cinder interrupted it. Her power, it's insane. That pillar of flame, that's all her. I barely managed to get us out of there, had to reveal a pretty big card to do it."

Once again, Weiss was assailed by new information, many of which were snippets she could go over at a later date, or at least, she would if she made it out of here. It wasn't looking good. "What's our next step?"

Jaune looked frantic as he thought. "If we all teamed up on her at once, we might be able to stop her, but it's risky. We need to evacuate. Where are Goodwitch and Qrow?"

"They went down into Vale, Headmaster's orders, apparently. Not that it matters much anymore."

Jaune grimaced. "I don't really have a plan, Weiss. I've been winging it for a while now."

Morale was low, Weiss could tell. She wasn't exactly a beacon of positivity, but she'd at least try. "She's just one woman, Jaune. All of us can take her, together."

Jaune could feel his spirit lift slightly, albeit very. "It's a huge risk, and we'd have to lure her into position, and she doesn't strike me as the kind of person who can be lured anywhere, but it's our best chance at saving Beacon."

Jaune stood straight-backed, hand resting on the handle of Crocea Mors, and he opened his mouth.

 _CRACK!_

The sound was cacophonous, echoing out far and wide, making all those nearby, Faunus or not, wince in pain and surprise.

It sounded as if a thousand tons of earth and stone had just been forcibly moved all at once.

Jaune turned slowly, as did many of the others of their group, to stare.

They watched in abject despair as a gigantic winged Grimm Wyvern rose into the sky with a deafening roar, tattered wings sending chunks of dark Grimm matter over the entirety of Vale, the majority of which landing amongst Beacon's grounds.

"I just had to open my mouth."

* * *

 **There's not much for me to say here, so I'll just drop right into reviews.**

 **Dragon lord Syed 101: Yeah, I didn't really expect to be. 'Nothing in art is original' and all that jazz.**

 **IcyStream: I think I've got an idea, I just need to properly nail it down. So many things about the System are haphazard and jumbled together just to get them to work, it's absolute code-spaghetti.**

 **typhonyx: I can only hope that this chapter expounded upon a few of the things you mentioned. And a few things played out different, too. I can't wait to write the next chapter, to be honest.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: Once I finish working out the details of the ones I've added myself, which means charting them for both HP and XP, plus writing an entire loot table, I'll start working on this one, if a bit modified. The idea works really well with something I was going to work on a long time ago. I had the notes for a similar concept way back in November last year, and never developed it. Now, though...**

 **DuplicateUserName: What, Chekov's Gun? Never heard of it. Not once. It's never been mentioned before. At all.**

 **vesperon: I mean, to be fair, you are getting weekly chapters, and we're mid-arc. That's a pretty common practice.**

 **fictionelement777: Longer, huh? Trust me, you don't want longer. I tend to ramble, plus the fact that the length of the chapter is also directly the result of the weekly schedule. Look at some of the much larger chapter sizes in other Gamer fics, and tell me how many have consistent upload schedules? Glad you're enjoying it though!**

 **Guest: I'm gonna be honest, the difference in my opinion is negligible. Both fight for what they believe in, regardless of what it is that that may be. If I made it sound as if I was comparing a terrorist group to INSERT REAL MILITARY HERE then that may not be a problem for me to deal with, but for you to come to terms with.**

 **jedimasterb10: A shame, then, that the hero was not in time. What lies in store for them, no one rightly knows. Except me, but I don't count.**

 **razmire: Lemme let you in on a little secret. I actually didn't think about just how blindingly obvious it would be that Jaune would find a use for them, because I was planning on Jaune taking the time to learn how to defuse them at a later point, and salvaging components. But, well, let's just say my mind may have been changed.**

 **Guest: Man, there's been a few people who seem to have had a problem with the last chapter. If this was a "wasts of your time" then I apologize, but I never said it was going to be complete AU. Canonically, Vol 4 is where the world opens up to RWBY and JNPR, and with Systema I'm planning on it being quite similar, in a game-like style.**

 **Fyr RedNight: There was a single second where I was really confused, then I realised you just changed your name, lmao. Hope this held up to the excitement!**

 **armentho: My favorite, reading about massacres. I have a few ideas of how Faunus are to be portrayed, and whilst the show isn't exactly what I would call a forefront in anti-racism, I do want to try and portray it as best I can. I wouldn't say I'm all that familiar with it, and have definitely never been on the receiving end, but the more accurate I am the better off I think it'll be, just as long as it doesn't run along exact real-world parallels. Once the world opens up, I'll be able to take some creative liberties.**

 **Dragon Bone Z: The name thing is completely unintentional, I promise. Didn't know about it until I was curious, and quickly googled Systema. That was a surprise.**

 **dirtrevor: I have a serious problem. I see the word demon, or daemon in this case, and my brain automatically jumps to Doom, and then I just find myself listening to Rip & Tear and BFG Division. Like I'm doing now. Man this is a good song.**

 **Drakon Hunter: Have you been reading my notes?! Seriously, though, you've got some great insight. A few things there I hadn't truly considered up until this point, and with the impending arc of the open world, I've got some serious thought to put into what comes next. Of course, that's not to say I haven't been teasing it since before chapter 20. I've got some long-reaching plans, and I like to foreshadow. Glad you're enjoying!**

 **The Qrow: You realise that not only are you 51 chapters behind, but that it is normally exponentially harder as time progresses to improve? This is much less like a classic RPG and more like an amalgamation of hundreds of games that I've custom-built up into the System. I didn't just copy-paste Jaune into D &D.**

 **101: Technically this is pretty close to what a Geist can do, so I gotchu.**

 **Shadow of God: Hopefully this chapter answered a few of your questions, and added a bunch more :P**

 **That about does it for reviews this week! I have a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale where you can support myself and my writing if you so choose!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	55. Same Old Dog, Same Old Trick

**Apologies for being a couple days late, this chapter had a lot going on that I had to figure out, and life got a little hectic this week too. Next chapter will go up at the usual time, if all goes according to plan.**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid for supporting me this month!**

* * *

How do you stop a gigantic Grimm Wyvern from wreaking havoc and destruction through one of the most densely populated kingdoms on Remnant?

The answer was, unsurprisingly, quite simple. Kill it.

The problems stemmed from the solution being somewhat difficult to implement at best, and downright impossible at worst.

Adding to this the fact that the best chance Jaune had of getting close to it meant he had to first fight off the woman who had killed Ozpin before she'd gained whatever power it was that she now had, it wasn't looking all that good.

"We need to get out of here."

His voice tumbled out from his lips without his doing, and he was surprised to find himself agreeing with himself, which, if anything, was a sign that he might be right.

A number of eyes shot to him, but he doubled down on changing his mind. "We might've stood the slightest chance of going up against Cinder when it was all of us on her, but now there's that giant Wyvern to contend with. We can't hope to defeat both her and the Grimm."

The eyes, or rather the people attached to them, began to murmur and discuss what he'd presented, but he figured that tripling down couldn't hurt. "We need to help the evacuees, get them to Patch. And us. We need to get our wounded out of here, and we need to survive. Vale will recover, Beacon will recover, but not if we all die here. Live to fight another day and all that."

Weiss, who was effectively the only awake member of his team left, closed her eyes in thought, before those ice-blue orbs locked with his own. "If we even try to run, that Wyvern will pick us off one by one until there's none of us left. That, or it'll just follow us and take down the evacuation craft. We still have to fight it."

That. That was the part of the plan that Jaune knew at least one person would wonder about, and he knew he didn't have a very convincing answer.

"I'll take care of that. Leave it to me."

Weiss glared. "You changed your mind, said we need to leave, but you want to stay? Is it stupidity or just vanity?"

Jaune returned the glare in equal force, the first time he'd ever done that before, and it seemed to catch Weiss off-guard. "Neither. I have a plan, and I'm the only one that can pull it off. We both know that. So go, Weiss, you're in charge. Take Blake and Pyrrha, take everyone, get them out of here. I'll handle our big, scaly friend."

He dropped the glare and gave his teammate a small smile. "You're our smartest member, Weiss. Always have been, Pyrrha and Blake would agree. But I'm our most difficult to pin down. Even if Cinder and the Wyvern can figure out some of my tricks, I've always got more up my sleeves. Go, please. Get clear."

Weiss paused at his final sentence. "What are you planning, Jaune?"

Jaune couldn't help the rueful smile that crossed his face. "Oh, you know me. Nothing smart."

* * *

General James Ironwood, the Tin Soldier, was irrevocably, undeniably, completely and utterly enraged.

This man, this criminal, this scum, thought he could just waltz upon his ship and do with it what he wished?

Then, the nerve he had to present him with what the fool obviously believed to be the ultimatum. He had no clue how he operated, no idea what lengths he was willing to go to in order to protect humanity.

He truly believed him to be an idiot, that the General of the Atlesian Military was foolish enough to fall for such a ploy.

Roman Torchwick was about to understand exactly how Ironwood had made it this far in his career.

He wasn't a political person, that had just come with the rest of his responsibilities.

No, General James Ironwood had become General of the Atlesian Army through action.

He squeezed the trigger as Roman lifted his cane, and the round that ejected from the barrel found itself being knocked to the side as Roman swayed, Melodic Cudgel meeting metallic arm as Ironwood simply blocked the attack.

There was a single moment as Roman's eyes widened ever-so-slightly, coming face to face with the barrel of the revolver, and he made the tactical decision to try and pull Melodic Cudgel free.

It was like trying to pull a bone out of the mouth of an Elder Beowolf, and Roman quickly abandoned his weapon, darting backwards.

Ironwood spared the weapon a single glance before he crushed it in his grip, tossing the remains off the edge of the Daedalus, much to Torchwick's dismay.

"Look, General, surely we can figure this out somehow," He began, words coming fast and without meaning behind them.

The General ignored his words. "This is for all those who lost their lives at your hand."

The first shot shattered his Aura underneath the impact, knocking the thief onto his back as Ironwood approached, stepping one boot atop the criminal's wrist.

"What was it you said, Roman? 'Lie, cheat, steal and survive'?" Ironwood asked, pulling back the hammer.

"Survive this."

The gunshot rang out into the evening.

A single, peaceful moment in a night of death, destruction, madness and mayhem. It came at the cost of so many. It came at the cost of soldiers, civilians, terrorists and thieves.

Ironwood turned to his companion, the young girl in the red cloak looking as shell-shocked as he'd expect anyone in her situation to feel, though there were lines of determination written into her face, belying a maturity he hadn't honestly expected. When he'd read the brief Ozpin had provided him with, he'd seen that she was younger, more naive, easier to manipulate.

Now, though, he saw anything but.

Ruby Rose was the spitting image of her mother, that much he was sure of, and their personalities, whilst different, still shared many similarities, such as the desire to help.

At least Ruby had what Summer didn't, and that was what appeared to be self-control.

"We need to leave, Ms Rose," He began, and it snapped her attention away from the body that lay bleeding on the metal plating.

"We need to get to Beacon!" Ruby let out, determination at war with her own introversion, unsure of what she could reasonably demand of a General.

Ironwood stepped to the edge of the floundering Daedalus and peered into the distance. "No, we don't. Beacon's been evacuated."

"What?!" Ruby exclaimed, rushing to stand next to the man, her own silver eyes staring at the carnage below.

"The evacuation will take them to Patch, it is where we should head. My ship is still mostly working, unless something happened to the hangar on the way up here. Our destination is Patch."

"But what about Beacon?" Ruby asked.

The two stared as the Wyvern rounded the cliffs and settled upon the ruined tower of Beacon.

"Beacon has fallen, Ms Rose. There is nothing left for us there. We've lost."

* * *

How do you even begin to kill a Wyvern?

Surprisingly, that wasn't even the biggest problem Jaune was wrestling with.

He had an idea for that. Sure, it might not work, in fact, it was probably suicide, but then again, those were his favorite odds.

No, the biggest problem was going to be Cinder Fall.

How do you deal with someone like her?

Someone so above him in terms of raw power, so above him in her willpower that they would commit what had to amount to genocide to gain whatever it was that she had acquired?

What did it say about the people who hid that power in one of the most heavily populated areas on Remnant?

No, now wasn't the time to get lost in the thoughts that the night had brought with it. This was the time for thinking about his next move, not others' past mistakes.

Which brought him right back to the question; how best to deal with Cinder Fall?

Jaune realised his solution as he reached the base of the tower, and swore under his breath. This was not a solution he, or anyone else, would like. This was a solution that would have him vilified, if not downright ostracized.

And it was his only option, realistically speaking.

It was either this or let the Wyvern roam free amongst Vale, and he was most certainly not considering giving up and leaving.

Both hands free he wedged his fingers in the somewhat-ajar elevator doors and wrenched hard, sliding them mostly open on warped rails, squeezing himself between the gap and into the shaft, where there was barely anything to stand on aside from a single beam of warped steel that jutted out from the concrete wall.

Not that it really mattered all that much as Jaune cast _Surface Walk_ , placing one foot against the cracked concrete and following it with the other foot, wincing as rubble fell underneath his boots, splintering and echoing in the depths of Beacon.

He allowed himself to stand as if upright, and began to walk, step by step climbing his way up the elevator shaft and closer towards what very much might be his impending doom.

Which, if he was being perfectly honest, was a terrifying thought.

He had less than ten percent of his Aura, sitting uncomfortably in the red, and whilst he had plenty of MP and HP, that wouldn't mean all that much in a two-on-one fight against wasn't exactly what he was capable of dealing with.

Gods, he wasn't even cut out for a one-on-one fight, but he really only had the one option.

The closer he got to the top of the tower, the warmer it got, and it was swelteringly hot when he stepped out of the ruined top of the shaft, pushing aside a broken gear.

The heat doubled in intensity the moment he surfaced, once the woman had noticed him.

Her hand raised, flames licking her fingertips, and she appeared unaffected by the heat of both her ambient Aura and the fireball she slowly spun in her hand.

"What a pleasant surprise. Come to throw yourself at me in one final attempt at heroism?" She asked, a sly smile on her face. "It will end surely how you expect it must."

Jaune swallowed deeply, his nerves disappearing down his throat alongside his pride.

"You won."

Those words seemed to catch the woman completely off-guard. "Oh? An admission of defeat? Seems kind of pointless to me, don't you think? Unless you think myself so foolish that I cannot recognize my own victory."

Jaune shook his head. "You got what you came for, what you destroyed Beacon for. Everything after this doesn't matter."

Cinder cocked her head, gesturing for him to continue.

"That Wyvern, unchecked, it'll destroy whatever remains of Beacon, and then move onto Vale. I can't let that happen."

"You can't? Why ever not? You lost, as you said. If you've lost, than there is to be no more fighting. Unless you haven't lost yet, and you still scrabble about in the dirt, resisting fate."

"I don't want to fight you-" He continued, only for a small laugh to interrupt him.

She said nothing else, and he corrected himself. "I don't want to go up against you right now. I'll lose, and die. But at the same time, I can't stand around and do nothing. You already won, you already got what you came for. Let me fight the Wyvern without interruption, and win or lose, it costs you nothing."

Cinder shook her head ever-so-slowly. "It isn't what it costs me, Jaune Arc, but what it stands to gain me. If you have something to offer, you had best offer it now. Otherwise, I will turn you into ashes upon the top of this tower, simply because it would serve as an excellent test of my newfound power."

"I can give you a favor."

The words were not easy for Jaune to say, and yet it appeared as if Cinder thought them to be a joke.

"A favor? What could I possibly want from you that you might possess, Jaune Arc? Anything you wish, I could have in my hand in moments. What could your favor possibly get me that I could get no other way?"

Jaune allowed himself to shrug. "I don't know what you want, so I can't tell you. But I have access to things that not even you do, no matter how much flame you command. I offer you a single favor that would have no expiration, no limits. All you have to do is stand aside."

Cinder put a single finger to her the bottom of her lips in thought, eyes never leaving Jaune. "Interesting. You seem so confident that you will survive this encounter. If you do not, I stand aside and gain nothing."

"And lose the favor. The Wyvern will have killed me, so you would have lost the gamble. But if you kill me, you never take the gamble at all. You have something to gain, and nothing to lose if you allow me to fight. If you do not, you lose nothing, but gain nothing. It would be a waste."

"Well, Jaune Arc, you surprise me. From what I had been told, you were not someone to try this sort of thing. I was under the impression that you were a foolish hero-type who would throw their life away to try and live up to the idealism that had plagued their mind from childhood."

"I still have plenty of time to kill you the next time we meet," Jaune replied, trying not to let his anger show.

"I suppose that I couldn't expect you to stop pursuing me. Though I imagine some of your friends may be less inclined to follow you into certain death. I accept you offer, Jaune Arc. I can only hope you are not as much of a disappointment as I expected when I first saw you."

Jaune stepped away from Cinder with a single nod, turning to face the Wyvern that orbited the tower, watching as it pulled away, taking a turn around the distant mountains, heading straight for the tower.

"I suppose this will be good luck, Jaune Arc. Win or lose, I win. What a wonderful deal."

Jaune supposed that the favor hadn't contained the clause that she must shut up whilst he killed the Wyvern, or tried, at least, but that might be a bit too much for the woman to accept. She liked to gloat, so it seemed.

The Wyvern almost seemed smaller up close, which Jaune was somewhat thankful for, as it latched large claws into the midsection of the tower, it's beady eyes staring right at him.

Jaune drew Crocea Mors and bashed the blade against the shield, letting out a shout. "Come on then you big lizard! You want some dinner? Come eat me!"

Jaune knew he was making a big mistake as he began his _Sprint_ , feet pounding the ruined floor of what had been Ozpin's office, the gaping maw of the Wyvern in front of him.

He was going to kill this thing or die trying.

He just wished his grand idea wasn't Taijitu-related.

* * *

He jumped, and with every passing moment he remained in mid-air his regret for his plan only doubled.

He hit saliva-covered tongue and quickly fought for purchase, barely rolling out of the way of a particularly sharp tooth as he found himself swallowed down the Wyvern's cavernous throat, darkness encasing him.

Oh, and the stench. How could he forget the stench? It was oppressive and thick enough that he could cut it with Crocea Mors, and even then it would probably require a lot of leverage.

Jaune didn't want to remain here any longer than he had, especially when he stumbled and accidentally put his hand through a corpse's partially-dissolved midsection, that wasn't pleasant.

 _Observe_ didn't seem to work any differently from inside what he was observing, which was interesting, but the information it presented him was terrifying, and he realised, in a bout of sudden irony, that he'd possibly bitten off more than he could chew.

 **[Elder Wyvern]**

 **[Level 60, Legendary Grimm]**

 **[HP: 150,000/150,000]**

That really wasn't good.

Jaune could feel his Aura dropping, the acidic contents of the Wyvern melting through what little protection he had at his disposal, and he quickly maxed his buffs, going for a complete cast, not willing to take the time to decide what he might need.

He let loose.

 _Spinning Mana Bullets, Mana Grenades,_ a _Mana Calamity_ for good measure, it wasn't doing enough damage to outpace the damage he was taking, but it was a good start.

He needed to do as much damage as he possibly could before he left.

But now was time for his final attack.

He'd dealt 34,483 damage in his consistent barrage of attacks, if only thanks to the fact that he was currently inside it, and it had no internal armor, but now he was nearly out of Mana, which didn't bode well, and his Aura wasn't far off.

Jaune opened his inventory and dropped the three bombs, watching as the timer's resumed their countdown.

And he brought his last remaining Mana within himself, focusing on casting one final skill.

 _Phase Shift_ activated and he felt his connection with the world slip and shift as he fell through matter and mass, the sudden rush of air coming just as he ran out of Mana, only to find a blinding pain in his left leg as he felt it simply cease to exist, a soundless scream being sucked away by the wind that rushed past his head.

He was falling, he realized, though he hadn't understood quite what it would mean for him, even as the agony began to dull.

He righted himself in the air, a trail of blood from the stump of his already healing leg streaming behind him.

Below him was Beacon's campus, but he was a way off from the tower, and much higher than he'd expected.

It occurred to him that there was nothing he could do about this fall. He was out of Mana completely, and it wouldn't regenerate in time to allow him the one thing he knew how to use, _Mana Impact_ , effectively nullifying his one of his two options.

His other option was to summon Alcmena and have her carry him back to safety, but she was still unavailable, her injury in the arena having kept her in what Jaune could only assume was stasis.

Jaune flipped on his back as he fell through the sky. If he was going to die from the fall, he might as well at least watch the results. He wanted to at least witness the death of the Elder Wyvern before he succumbed to his own mistakes.

His mental clock ticked down, three seconds, two, one.

The explosion shook the very air, which was impressive, the shockwave reaching him even as he fell.

The Wyvern roared in agony, chunks of dark matter flying in every direction.

Jaune smiled as he fell, wind rushing past his head. He'd done it.

He'd killed an Elder Wyvern.

A claw gripped him around the midsection, completely encompassing him in its grasp.

The Wyvern hadn't died. He'd just pissed it off.

* * *

He didn't have the AP or the MP to deal with this, so why wasn't it dead yet?

He glared at the giant dragon-like Grimm, and was promptly presented with information that explained why.

 **[Elder Wyvern]**

 **[Level 60, Legendary Grimm]**

 **[HP:70,517/150,000]**

So the three bombs had done 15,000 damage each. Great. That had been a waste.

Well, not a waste as such, but perhaps it hadn't been the best use of his Mana.

"Damn it!" Jaune swore as he tried to wrench himself from the Wyvern's grip, one hand coming loose.

Crocea Mors was still in his grip, which he was pleased to see, and he stabbed downwards, sword cutting against armored scales and barely making a dent.

It still released him, much to his surprise, and his next words died on his lips as his back hit a piece of broken clockwork, a grunt escaping in their stead.

"Well, I must say, it was an impressive display."

Jaune groaned.

"A shame that you didn't kill it, but at the very least you are alive. Which means you can still uphold your end of the deal. What a pleasant surprise."

Jaune sat upright, wincing as his broken arm cracked back into place. "You planned that."

Cinder shook her head. "I didn't. I simply took advantage of a series of coincidences. I manipulated them to my favor, that is all. Speaking of favors."

Jaune stood up shakily. "I'm not done fighting."

At that, Cinder rose a single eyebrow. "Well that does surprise me, but then again, it does fall back in line with my original opinion of you."

Jaune decided to ignore the genocidal maniac, instead opening his player menu and swapping a title.

Armsmaster was swapped to Soul Tamer, and Jaune felt the change ripple through his mostly unbroken spine as he closed his eyes for a single moment.

He had one final move he could make, and he brought forth Electrus.

The crystalline structure crackled and stung the very air as it came together, clinking and chiming as it stood upright.

Jaune was internally pleased to hear Cinder shut her mouth in surprise, as Electrus rounded, turning to face the Elder Wyvern.

In return the Wyvern looked at Electrus, malice dripping from its fangs. The only thing that was holding it back was whatever Cinder was doing that held it under her control.

He had one shot. "Make it count, Electrus."

The _Stormbolt_ that left the crystalline arms of Electrus fried the very air, the condensed bolt of lightning striking the Wyvern in the skull.

The roar of pain it let out blew Jaune's eardrums, blood pouring from his ears as he hit the ground on both knees.

He felt his ears heal, only to hear Cinder once more.

"All that effort, for naught. Such a shame. You almost won, though."

The Wyvern was still there, scorch marks down the side of the exposed skull. It looked in pain, but even still he was running on empty. He had nothing left. Electrus was already disappearing, crystals clinking together as they simply became shadows on the rubble.

"I suppose even you would run out of tricks eventually. I'm almost disappointed."

This damned woman. It wasn't enough to commit a massacre, she had to tease and prod him all the while, knowing damn well he wanted her to die, and was unable to do so.

Jaune began scrambling backwards, hands brushing past powdered glass and wrecked clockwork.

"Tsk. Running away already? But we haven't had time to chat."

Cinder brought her hand up, glass and flame swirling around until she was holding a spear, her smirk only increasing in satisfaction as she buried it in Jaune's stomach, sticking him in place.

Jaune let out a pained groan, a cough bringing more blood than was pleasant from his mouth.

"I'm a little worried I might not be able to redeem that favor, hero," Cinder began, the title she'd given him laden heavily with pure disdain. "You don't seem like you have much left to give."

Fire crept up her arm and dispersed off the shoulder as she leveled her palm, placing it just above the wound he was currently still afflicted by, the healing put off by the weapon that was still wedged in him. "I should kill you. I want to kill you."

Jaune spat blood in her face, watching with satisfaction as she recoiled visibly. "Then do it. Stop jerking me around."

Cinder engulfed her face in a layer of flame for a single moment, singing off the remnants of his lifeblood, before shaking her head softly. "It isn't willed, I'm afraid. My mistress wishes to see you grow, expand, delve deeper into what awaits you."

Jaune's eyes widened. That was new information. The mass-murderer was working for someone?

He let out another strained grunt. "Who's your mistress?"

His luck hadn't exactly been working wonders, even buffed as it was, and nothing changed. "No, no spoilers. Can't have you finding out too soon. It would spoil my fun."

Cinder gave the spear a quick half-twist, causing Jaune to spasm in pain. "I don't claim to grasp every one of her machinations, but I do believe myself capable of understanding the majority of them. Keeping you alive, it's one I don't quite get. Something about you is extraordinary, that much is blatantly clear, but what it is seems to evade my knowledge. Whatever I find, you seem to counter and support in one move. It's a worthwhile challenge to keep my mind busy."

"Well-" Jaune coughed out. "That doesn't seem too difficult."

Cinder gave the spear another twist, but she paid no more mind to his jab. "All the same, calling in that favor now, to find out, seems… a waste. A perfectly good opportunity thrown aside for curiosity's sake is not what I would call a smart move."

Something triggered in the back of Jaune's mind, and despite the fact that he was unable to place it, he still settled into his role as Cinder's current distraction.

"So, what? You don't exactly strike me as a smart-move-kind-of-murderer, you know?"

Cinder didn't fall for his obvious bait. "To you it must seem like magic. Well, more like a different kind of magic, I suppose. I can see why this was so overwhelming for you."

Jaune grinned through blood-stained teeth. "I dunno. You seem pretty underwhelming to me. I was expecting all maniacal evil laughter and 'my plan has come together flawlessly' speeches."

Cinder cocked her head, the barest hint of a smile on her lips. "Oh, you poor fool. You thought I would give it all up once I had you trapped? No, it's only because I'm trying to work out the best way to use that favor you gave that you remain alive. If it weren't for that, I wouldn't have hesitated to incinerate you on the spot, and then roast your friends one by one after each other for the sheer sake of testing this new power."

That had Jaune lose his grin quickly. He'd almost forgotten how he'd ended up in this situation, he'd gotten too caught up with thinking of quick-witted insults. Not very good ones, either.

"I can believe that you're foolish enough to believe that your attempts at insults were distracting enough to prevent me from hearing the approaching Bullhead, weren't you?" Cinder asked, and Jaune could feel all the color drain from his face in an instant.

Cinder turned to watch its approach, a single trail of smoke pouring out of one engine as it struggled not to list against the air currents.

"I take it one of your friends is aboard, trying their best to valiantly rescue you. I should send the Wyvern after it, but I think I might take a few moments to enjoy what they've got planned first."

Jaune placed both hands against the spear that held him in place and heaved, slowly but surely feeling it lift out of the concrete beneath him.

Cinder was still watching the Bullhead, keeping a close eye on it as the side door opened, red petals blowing in the wind, getting sucked into the smoke.

Jaune pushed harder and harder, lifting the spear further and further from his body. He only had a few moments to take advantage of the small chance, and he wasn't going to squander it.

"If it isn't Ruby Rose herself, come to save the day. What a pleasant surprise," Cinder began, flame licking up the side of her arm as both her eyes ignited with whatever power it was she'd stolen.

Ruby landed hard on the top of the tower, absorbing the situation in all but a moment.

Even as fast as she was, there was no dodging the blast of heat that hit her and threatened to completely blow her off the edge of the ruined tower.

Cinder lowered her arm. "Are you going to make a deal, too? I'm not sure if a favor from you would carry as much use, but I can be certain to use it regardless."

Ruby locked eyes with Jaune, silver widening as she watched him pull the spear completely free and lunge for the woman in red, her own weapon in his hand.

Ruby lunged as well, Crescent Rose glinting in the evening moonlight.

Another blast of heat radiated from the woman, knocking them both back to the ground and completely shattering the spear Jaune had been planning on using, sending shards of black glass amongst the rest of the rubble.

"What a try. Remarkable that you can even still move after everything you've been through, Arc. And Rose, what a naive attempt at a rescue."

She turned to Jaune, glass forming another weapon. A bow, a single arrow notched in the glassen bowstring.

"I changed my mind. You hold no worth to me. You are nothing but a hindrance to remove."

She drew, arrowtip meeting index finger.

"Jaune!" Ruby shouted, as Cinder released the arrow.

The tip hit him in the chest, and everything went black.

* * *

 **I know, I know, another cliffhangar ending. Next chapter will be the epilogue of Book 1, which is what I've practically decided to call the past 50+ chapters. Man, it's been one hell of a ride so far, and I'm not planning on stopping anytime soon.**

* * *

 **I'll jump right into reviews.**

 **F14M3RZ: You know, now that I re-read the Adam dialogue, you guys are all right. I really did write 'my love' like way too many times. I guess we can chalk that up to the fact that I wrote that little bit of dialogue over the course of three days. Must've just forgotten I put it in earlier.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: In a sense, these Chekov's Gun's were kinda useless. The idea of a useless weapon is great, though. I'm thinking a confetti-cannon.**

 **Shadow of God: Well, I'm not not saying Yang didn't lose her arm, I'm just not not not saying Yang didn't lose her arm. (I don't actually know what that means.) A lot of things you've mentioned I've actually had planned for months now, and I have a couple ideas. We know that the major theme of Vol 4, 5 and 6 was Family, and I don't plan to mess with that all that much. At least, thematically-wise. Oh, and the Griffin, I just figured I'd throw them in a little early. There's a proper reason, but it's only been teased and not explored, so I won't spoil it.**

 **typhonyx: The my love thing, I know, I know. Gotta make sure I don't make that mistake again. Should hopefully never happen again though!**

 **Drakon Hunter: It may not be what you're asking, but I am planning on implementing a few things sooner rather than later that might have something to do with what you're talking about.**

 **armentho: I've had this Cinder-Jaune confrontation planned for a couple weeks, and I really think it works out better than just a straight-up fight, simply because of the level difference. You made a lot of good points, it's just a shame that they didn't come up.**

 **razmire: Let's be honest, was it really a surprise? Subtlety is not my specialty sometimes.**

 **jedimasterb10: Grima? I think you mean Kevin, which is absolutely not the name of the Wyvern summon. No, I refuse to change it to Kevin.**

 **IcyStream: No worries, I'm not completely inept. Thanks for the TEDtalk though, feel free to do some more. We can always use more TEDtalks, though I wonder if Ted will ever run out of things to talk about.**

 **dirtrevor: Blake will be mostly okay. I mean, the crippling liver failure isn't great, and the serious spinal damage means she won't be fighting again. Adam will probably be fine. Oh, and the God of Darkness will possess Penny and declare war on Vacuo.**

 **SirenAtlantica: :P**

 **Guest: That's because this is what's known as balance. It could be more balanced, but it could also be super unbalanced, which isn't fun to read for longer than 10k words.**

 **Guest: Yes, technically yes, also technically yes, possibly, probably because it seemed appropriate at the beginning, that isn't even a question, thanks for stopping by :P**

 **PasiveNox: Perchance is there a 'great great great'? (I'm just messing with you, glad you're enjoying!)**

 **Mordred's Stories: I left that deliberately ambiguous, but Ozpin is super dead. Like, super charcoal dead. Yang's just mostly charcoal dead.**

 **gandalf da black: A little of column A, little of column B.**

 **jhunt883: There's a button in the ffnet editor right of the 'align center' button called 'horizontal line'. Just give that a lil clicky-click.**

* * *

 **And that does it for reviews this week! Just as a formatting note, gonna try separating the reviews with linebreaks from now on, just to kinda make it a lil easier to keep track of.**

 **I have a Pa Treon as AFatFlyingWhale if anyone feels like supporting me, and supporting me gets you access to the entire spreadsheet with every single detail, including all the calculators, future skills, and a bunch more stuff. I wanna take some more input from over there sooner or later, and that's a great way to not only help me out, but take a more solid part in the development process of Systema! You don't have to, of course, but I'd certainly appreciate it!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	56. Only A Little Bit Stoned

**A little late, but I was struggling with Google Docs refusing to cooperate. Turns out, as far as I'm aware, Docs isn't the most happy when you have a document that's 750-plus pages of content. Enjoy!**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid for supporting me this month!**

* * *

"Hello."

Jaune startled upwards, sitting up from the cold white floor. "What?!"

The voice, disentangled from any kind of physical body, spoke again. "I said hello. You appear to be rather confused."

Jaune looked around, checking over his shoulder. The room, or expanse, wherever he was, was completely white and boundless, as if it stretched to eternity and back.

"Where am I? Who are you?"

"Good questions. I'm sorry I don't have the answers."

Jaune climbed to his feet, trying to bring up his menu.

There was no response.

"I felt that way too, once. That fear of losing it."

Jaune's head snapped upwards. "What?"

"Yours is different than mine was. Purer, yet changed."

Jaune opened his mouth, yet no words escaped.

"Mine, it gave me power. Sheer, raw, unfiltered power. Mine with which to do as I pleased."

Another voice spoke from the whitescape, deeper, more masculine. "Mine gave me the truth. No matter where I was, whoever I spoke to, I always had the truth."

Another voice. "Mine gave me flight."

More voices joined, chorusing together.

"You are all past wielders," Jaune said once they had fallen silent.

The original voice spoke again. "Yes. We once held what you call the System. The power of the Gods."

That was new.

"Gods? What are you talking about?"

Jaune wasn't sure how, but he could feel the original voice turn away. "You are needed elsewhere, as am I."

Jaune could see the white fading, chunks of it turning silver and darkening even further.

All that was white became black, and he was swallowed whole by the darkness.

* * *

How had everything gone so poorly?

Ruby ran one hand through her hair, the other clenched into a fist. She knew the answer to the question, she just didn't want to face the truth.

"You can't keep beating yourself up like this, kiddo. You saved his life."

Ruby looked up at her father, frustration written into her expression. "I turned my boyfriend into stone, Dad. That's not what I would call a good thing. We don't even know if he's alive or not."

Taiyang let out a short sigh. "Rubes, he is. Your mother could do what you just did, and I've seen what happens to people who've faced her down. They lived, once the petrification faded."

Ruby let out her own sigh. They'd had this argument a few times now over the past week. "And how long did that normally last?"

Taiyang shook his head. "Your mother had far more control over it, she had years of practice. You let out all of that power in a single, emotion-fueled blast, kiddo. It's to be expected it'd last a lot longer."

Ruby could feel tears building up on the edge of her eyes, but she resolutely refused to wipe them away. "If it doesn't, then I've killed two people I called friends."

At that, Tai gave his daughter a hug, wrapping his muscled arms around her small form. "You did what you had to, Ruby. Remember that you did it to save lives, and remember that that's all that matters. Besides, according to you, Jaune might be able to save Penny's life."

Ruby accepted the familiar, fatherly embrace. "And what if he doesn't come back?"

Tai kissed the top of her head. "He will, Ruby. From the stories I've heard, a little petrification doesn't sound like enough to put a damper on his stride."

* * *

Another week. Nothing. Jaune was still as, well, still as a statue. Ruby still barely left his side, wracked with grief, and it was almost worse that the position he'd been in when he'd been petrified was once of acceptance. The boy's face showed no sign of fear, no sign of pain.

Just an expression of acceptance.

Tai ran a hand through his hair, downing his coffee. Qrow, sat next to him and, expectantly, nursing a hangover, downed his in turn, a wince the only expression to cross his face the entire time since he'd arrived on the Xiao Long doorstep.

"It's not good, Tai."

Tai sighed. "No shit, Qrow. Ozpin's dead, the Maiden power stolen, and the culprit missing? What about that sounds good?"

Qrow shook his head. "It's not just that. Vale has no signal, we can't contact any of the other kingdoms. Half my contacts are dead, the other half want nothing to do with Vale, and the public are starting to view this as an Atlesian coup gone wrong. There's a chance we might have another Great War on our hands."

That, that was news to Tai. Another Great War would spell disaster from Remnant as a whole. Not that what had happened didn't already.

"Cleanup's started, Goodwitch is leading the charge, and the surviving teachers from Beacon are stepping in to help, but even still, the refugee center isn't equipped to handle the entirety of Vale for very long."

Tai nodded. "I've been trying to get extra supplies to it, but some of Vale's higher-ups aren't used to slumming it with the rest of the citizens. Fights are breaking out, and it's drawing in Grimm. Patch isn't exactly a hotspot, but at times like these, a single Beowolf could spell disaster."

Qrow poured himself another coffee, gesturing the pot to Tai, who accepted. "If I could just find Oz it'd be at least somewhat better, but I've had no luck on that end, and without communications it's going to be a real challenge."

Tai hummed in thought. "What's your next move?"

Qrow placed the empty pot back on the stand, pushing his hair out of his face. "Mistral. I need to talk with Lionheart about locating the Spring Maiden, and that's what Oz would expect. My bet, he's headed that way. It shouldn't take me all that long to get there."

Taiyang nodded, mostly to himself. "You met Jaune, right?"

The question caught Qrow off-guard, but he recovered quickly. "Yeah, briefly. Why?"

"I know he's a little busy at the moment, but he was dating Ruby. I dunno, I just wanna know what kind of kid he was."

Qrow shrugged. "Seemed like a good kid. Oz seemed a little wary of him, but Yang gave him the official Xiao Long seal of approval."

"Any idea if he'll break out of his situation anytime soon? It's tearing Ruby apart."

Qrow's expression dropped. "I don't know. You were always closer to Summer than I was, especially around the time she learned about what she had. Figured you'd be the expert."

Tai snorted at that. "We both know that isn't true. Raven was Summer's partner, in case you forgot. We were background at best for a lot of that first year."

Qrow smiled at the thought. "Great looking background, though. Best in the crowd."

"One of us was. You spent most of the time looking surly and tripping over anything you came near."

The smile turned into a frown as Qrow punched Tai on the shoulder. "At least I had a suave charm. You just hit on anything that moved. Or breathed. Or didn't breath."

Tai threw his hands in the air. "You hit on a mannequin one time and no one ever lets you live it down!"

A snort of laughter caught the attention of the two men. "All this time and I've never heard that story? That sounds like a crime."

A look of concern washed over Tai, but he pushed it down. "Yang, you feeling well enough to be out of bed?"

Yang nodded stiffly, taking a seat at the table. "Don't repeat what the doc said, Dad. I'm fine."

Tai couldn't help it. "He did say a month of bedrest, Yang. It's barely been two weeks."

"And I said I'm fine."

Tai knew his daughter well enough to recognize that tone, so he let it go. "Well, it's good to see you up. You should go see Ruby, if you're feeling up to it."

Yang snorted, though this was more disdain than humor. "Sure she isn't too busy with Jaune to see me?"

Tai looked to Qrow. "You handle that while I go out. I'm on guard duty for the evacuation center."

Qrow nodded, withdrawing his flask.

The moment Tai was out of the room he took two glasses from a cupboard and placed them on the counter, pouring a measure in each. "You're gonna need this, kiddo. More than me, anyway."

Yang looked at it with an expression of surprise. "Not that I don't appreciate it, but if you're going to tell me that Ruby and Jaune have eloped I'm probably going to need something stronger for that to come as a surprise."

"Don't say I didn't warn you. Just… go see your sister."

Yang stood up and downed the glass, wincing as it burned at the back of her throat, before making her way back down the hallway.

Ruby's room was a place she was intimately familiar with, somewhere she'd been a thousand times before.

She had never expected it to catch her off-guard like it did.

She swung the door open slowly, and the glass hit the floor, shards splintering the wood.

* * *

"What.. how… what happened?" Yang asked, stepping into her younger sister's room.

Everything was untouched, just like what she remembered, except for the pillows and blankets that had been stripped from her bed and scattered in a pile in the middle of the floor, just next to the statue of one of her friends that was laid on the ground, one stone hand reaching up at nothing.

Ruby seemed surprised to even see Yang, and her gaze went from her sister to her fellow leader. "I didn't mean to…"

That caught Yang off-guard even further. "Wait, what? You did this?"

Evidently, that was the wrong thing to say, and Ruby turned her head, no longer looking at her sister.

"I didn't mean to. Cinder, she was going to shoot him, and I just, I don't know. One moment I was reaching for Jaune, the next everything was white. Then I just woke up, and Dad and Uncle Qrow were halfway through placing him in the living room. I had them bring him in here."

Yang took a seat on the unused bed, pushing blonde hair out of her face with her one remaining arm. "And I thought I came out of there pretty beat up."

Ruby avoided looking at the scarred stump on the other side, keeping her gaze on the floor. "I'm sorry I didn't come see you. I'm just worried that if he does get free, he won't know where he is."

"When."

Ruby looked up at that. "What?"

Yang gave her sister a smile. "Come on, when has Jaune ever backed down from these kinds of odds? Breaking out of a statue sounds like just the kind of challenge he'd enjoy."

Ruby couldn't help the smile that crossed her face, though the sullen expression returned quickly. "I just wish that there was some kind of sign that he was getting better."

Yang slid off the bed and wrapped her one good arm around her sister's shoulder. "Mind if I sit here with you for a bit?"

Ruby nodded, making space. "Thanks, Yang."

* * *

It was early evening when Ruby woke, stirring from her sister's hug. She'd fallen asleep hours ago, and Yang must have turned in soon after, but something had brought her back.

She quickly checked, but Jaune was still as rock-solid as he had been before. Something else had disturbed her.

There it was again. Faint scratching. Zwei was out with Taiyang at the evacuation center, and most likely would be until later, so it couldn't be him.

A Grimm? It didn't sound like it, but it was trying to get inside. Maybe it was a small Grimm.

Ruby grabbed Crescent Rose off the hook near the front door, checking to see if it was loaded before opening the door and stepping out into the cold air.

The scratching stopped, and it was quickly replaced by approaching footfalls.

Ruby tensed, one finger laid against the trigger, her eyes watchful as she warily waited for whatever it was to appear.

Then, all of a sudden, it burst from the hedge.

"Cadejo?!" Ruby exclaimed, shock and surprise making her nearly drop Crescent Rose as the wolf summon happily placed his front paws against her, licking her face.

"Where did you come from, boy?" Ruby asked, and, unsurprisingly, the summon didn't respond, instead dropping back onto all fours and ducking past her, into the house.

Ruby followed quickly, shutting the door behind her and propping Crescent Rose back up on the rack.

Yang's yelp of surprise was enough to clue Ruby in on where Cadejo had gone, and she quickly stepped in.

What she saw nearly broke her heart once more.

Cadejo padded up to Jaune and laid down next to him, a whimper building up in the back of his throat. The keening whine was almost enough to bring Ruby to tears, and she quickly sat back down, hands scratching the poor wolf behind the ears.

"Wha… where did he come from?" Yang asked, confusion written into her face.

"I don't know," Ruby replied, equally confused. "I heard him scratching at the wall, so I went outside to check. He surprised me, too."

"Well, it's good news, right? You asked for a sign, and he comes sauntering up to the house? Hell of a coincidence."

Ruby nodded to herself, the wolf placing his head in her lap. "It is. Though I'm not sure if we can fit many more of Jaune's summons in here. Might be a little cramped."

Yang laughed at that, before standing up. "I'm gonna go try and make some dinner before Dad and the rest of the team get back. Keep them company, yeah?"

"You sure you-" Ruby began, only to be silenced as Yang shook her head.

"I said try, Rubes. I lost my arm. I'm covered in burn scars. I get that, more than anyone else I imagine. Doesn't mean I'm gonna roll over and give up. If making food is that big an obstacle, I think I've got a bit more to worry about."

Ruby accepted that. "Just let me know if you need some help. I'm team leader, there's no shame in accepting help."

Yang smiled. "Thanks, Rubes. I'll holler if I need you to burn the kitchen down."

Ruby frowned. "That was once! One time! You never let me live it down!"

Yang stepped out, headed for the kitchen. It was one thing to say she was going to try, and another to actually go about it. She had a massive learning curve coming, that was for sure.

Easy part was grabbing ingredients. She'd never found anything in cooking that she couldn't lift with one arm. The problem would come from some of the more technical maneuvers. Like, for example, cracking an egg. That was going to take a little finagling.

The first time she sent the bowl scattering across the countertop. The second she gave up on using the edge of the now partially-full bowl and instead decided to simply smack the egg against the side of the counter. Messy, but she could always clean up afterwards. The way it was going, she would definitely have to clean up afterwards.

Omelettes wasn't her greatest choice.

"Man, what I would give for one of those little cutting things that you just put the thing in and press down. That'd make this a hell of a lot easier," She remarked to herself as she struggled with the knife, trying to keep the ham steady as she sliced it into pieces. The fact that it kept sticking to the side of the knife was especially frustrating, and she eventually gave up, whacking it a number of times with the knife and taking what chunks she'd separated aside.

Finally, she placed a skillet atop the cooktop and turned on the flame, only wincing slightly as the fire sprouted from the burner. She ignored that, placing some butter in the rapidly heating skillet and giving it a quick tilt to coat the surface, before retrieving the egg-milk mixture.

Quickly pouring some into the pan, she retrieved her toppings. The ham had proved to be more difficult than the cheese, thankful her father preferred to buy it in rather solid blocks. It took a few moments, but she quickly dropped a handful of both into the pan and then realised that this was going to be the make-or-break moment.

Rubber spatula in hand, Yang quickly and deftly flipped half the omelette-in-progress atop itself, dropping it onto a pre-readied plate. It wasn't pretty, it wasn't going to win any competitions, but it was a damn-sight better than nothing, and she'd done it with one hand.

So, she was feeling pretty proud.

As she set about repeating the process, Ruby wandered out, Cadejo in tow. "Smells good, Yang. Can I have one? I'm kinda starving."

Yang smiled. It was almost like she was back in Signal. "Sure, Rubes, take it. Give Cadejo some of the leftover ham, Zwei will have the rest."

Ruby nodded and took a chunk of chop-marked ham off the cutting board, tossing it into the air where it landed in the wolf's awaiting jaws.

The wolf let out a satisfied sound as he ate it in the blink of an eye, sitting by the empty fireplace.

Ruby was quick to compliment Yang's cooking, which only made her nostalgia more intense as the younger girl quickly set about starting a fire, the wolf doing his best to help her, which mostly meant nudging her with his head in a request for head-scratches.

Not knowing how long the others would be, Yang finished the rest of the omelettes and carefully put them in a container, placing it on a shelf in the fridge and returning to her own plate.

"Want me to cut it up for you?" Ruby asked, and Yang paused. "It's fine if you don't-"

"Yeah, that'd be good. Thanks Rubes," Yang interrupted, and Ruby gave her sister a smile, quickly slicing the omelette into more bite-sized pieces and handing the plate back.

The two settled back, enjoying the warmth of the atmosphere and the well-cooked meal.

It wasn't all that long after they'd finished that heard approaching footsteps, accompanied by voices rapidly increasing in volume, voices that they recognized.

Ones that Cadejo recognized too, his tail picking up from where he lay in front of the fireplace, wagging back and forth.

"I'm just saying, if we went out and blew up a bunch of the Grimm in Vale, the clean-up would be, like, twice as fast!"

"Nora, once again, the clean-up is a lot more than just killing Grimm. There aren't actually all that many, it's mostly repairing ruined buildings and clearing rubble from streets."

Nora and Ren, embroiled once again in a discussion, two different stances on the same point.

"Yeah, but if we take all the Grimm, then everyone else can focus on the rest of the clean-up!" Nora continued, undeterred.

"Last I heard, the Grimm were gone from Vale anyway. Nothing left for them there. Beacon's another story, but that's mostly because the Wyvern is still attracting Grimm."

That voice was Tai, a voice that both Ruby and Yang were incredibly grateful to hear.

Tai opened the door, surprised and glad to see both his daughters up and out. "Oh, Ruby, Yang! Good to see you two doing stuff. How's it going?"

Ruby smiled. "Good. Yang cooked some dinner, it's in the fridge."

Tai quirked an eyebrow at his eldest daughter, who gave a shrug. "What, I can still make omelettes. Not that difficult, just a couple, uh, things to get used to, that's all."

Tai gave her a thankful nod, and immediately leveled both his fists, expression changing in a moment. "Grimm!"

Cadejo barked.

Tai lowered his fists slightly as a look of confusion crossed his face. "Uh…"

"Cadejo!" Nora cheered, wrapping the wolf in a hug. "Does this mean Jaune's back?"

Ruby shook her head. "No, he's still… but it means that we're a step closer."

"What's going on?" Tai asked, and Ren decided to fill him in.

"Jaune is… capable of a number of things. One such thing is summoning things which he calls 'Bound Souls'. Cadejo is a Bound Beowolf Soul, as far as Jaune informed us."

"And it's friendly?"

Yang glanced at the wolf, where Nora was still hugging it tightly. "I dunno, Dad. He looks real vicious right now."

Tai leveled a glare. "Uh-huh. Real funny."

"We're not sure if the rest of them will arrive, but they might. We're holding out hope," Ruby said, before peering over her father's shoulders. "Zwei still at the evacuation center?"

Tai nodded, closing the front door behind him and walking towards the fridge. "He helps keep the kids at ease, and with the kids at ease the adults are more likely to behave. Good all around, and that dog never fails at accept attention."

Yang laughed. "Sounds like someone we know. What's that thing about dogs always being like their owners?"

Tai rolled his eyes. "Ha ha. Ooh, cheese and ham."

"Yeah, Zwei's easily distracted by food too."

Tai didn't bother turning to glare at Ruby, he was too busy reheating the omelettes.

A loud thump sounded out from the door.

The assembled group shared a look, before Ruby got up, slowly opening the front door.

If she was being perfectly honest, a giant creature made of assorted metal crystals what not what she expected.

She also hadn't really expected the rest of Jaune's summons to arrive in tow, at least, all at once. She'd thought that maybe they would arrive one by one over the coming hours.

All at once was not quite what she'd had in mind.

What she did know was that they were not all going to fit in the house. Especially not Callisto or Alcmena, who was about the size of a Bullhead at the moment, seemingly unwilling to return to her smaller form.

"Uh… Dad? Can you help me move Jaune outside?"

* * *

Taiyang was definitely out of his depth. It looked like a bunch of repainted Grimm and a couple sentient crystals were conducting a ritual out the front of his house in an attempt to de-petrify his youngest daughter's boyfriend that she'd accidentally turned to stone whilst fighting a mass-murderer and a giant Grimm Wyvern.

When had his life gotten so strange?

Actually, he knew when. The day he'd met Summer, Raven and Qrow. That was the day his life had gotten so strange. You couldn't come into contact with any of them without changing a little.

That wasn't to say that this wasn't pretty high up on the strangeness scale.

Also, nothing was happening. They'd been sitting out there for nearly a minute, and absolutely nothing had happened. It was more like a funeral than a ritual, now that he thought about it. That was a depressing thought.

Ruby was nesting a mug of hot chocolate, his personal recipe, the steam wafting up into the evening air as she sat on the doorstep, watching the proceedings.

Her interest was far more vested than his, but even still he found himself unable to tear his gaze away from the creatures. Some of them made sense, but others were a little more confusing. The fact that this kid had managed to tame a bunch of Grimm wasn't the weirdest thing he'd experienced in his life, but the hulking crystalline golems were certainly up there.

They kind of gave him the creeps, now that he thought about it. Faceless, unmoving, almost mechanical. How did you know what something like that was thinking? Was something like that even capable of thinking?

Questions without answers, he supposed.

He was snapped out of his reverie as a crack sounded out over the yard, drawing all the attention.

The statue of Jaune had moved.

That was most definitely not what Tai had expected.

Another crack was quickly followed up by a staccato burst of snaps as stone ground against itself, flakes splintering off and landing in the grass.

Ruby was up on her feet, and all of the creatures were closing in, tightening the circle.

A chunk of stone fell off his face, and the sudden sound of air rapidly filling empty lungs filled the garden.

"Jaune?!" Ruby exclaimed, drink forgotten about as she dropped the mug to the dirt, kneeling next to the still partially-petrified teenager as he coughed and wheezed.

The first word Jaune had said in the past two weeks escaped his lips. "Ow."

Tai had a feeling he was going to like this kid.

* * *

Everything was foggy, out-of-focus. Like it was covered in a film of some kind, like he was looking through warped glass. It changed, bent, modulated until it was so distorted that he couldn't make anything out, and then it would snap back to place, and begin all over again.

It was one hell of a headache, that was for sure.

Ruby had helped him inside once he'd dismissed his summons, all of which seemed happy to see him back in the land of the living. He wasn't a hundred percent sure what had happened, but that could all wait.

First, food. He felt like he hadn't eaten in weeks.

The blond man had introduced himself quickly, already setting about making food, and Jaune had tried to bring his wilful mind under control, one hand on his head.

He was dealing with a cold sweat in addition to the headache, and the room was spinning, swimming around.

Words were shared, though not from Jaune, and as he sat, he felt the floor simply up and turn.

He was on the ground now. Funny, he didn't remember falling. He'd been sat up only a moment ago.

Why was his headache getting worse?

More words, he couldn't make them out. He was shivering, now. Something was seriously wrong, but he couldn't put a finger on it.

Actually, he couldn't really feel his fingers. He'd fallen on his arm, the angle awkward. How long had he been laid out on this couch?

When had he ended up on the couch? He'd been on the ground only a moment ago, and yet it felt like an age.

It was morning, now. He could've sworn it had been night a second ago. He'd closed his eyes for a second.

The headache was gone now, though, and in its place were questions, questions that desperately needed answers.

He lifted himself up, pushing blond hair out of his face as he took a deep breath, the pleasant feeling of clean countryside air brisk against his skin keeping him more refreshed than he could remember feeling in some time.

The first answer he received from the floating notification box that hovered just out of his periphery until he turned to face it.

Man, that was a long list of things to look at. He supposed he should just start at the top and work his way through it.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[40th Vytal Tournament: Round 3]**

 **[Reward: Experienced Teamwork Perk]**

A little distasteful, if he was being honest. He wasn't going to turn it down, but even still, those memories were fresh.

He shook his head to clear it, moving to the next item on the list.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[Huntsman: First Steps (Part 5)]**

 **[** _ **Help defend Beacon from attack.**_ **]**

 **[Rewards: +10 Reputation with Vale and Atlas, +5 Reputation with Vacuo and Mistral]**

He didn't really know if what he'd done counted as helping to defend Beacon. He hoped it did, though.

 **[Quest Failed!]**

 **[Combat Class: Yang Xiao Long]**

 **[** _ **Defeat Yang Xiao Long in Combat Class and win the bet you made with her.**_ **]**

Oh. Well, it wasn't the biggest loss. He had vague memories of the previous night, and he knew she was alive, at least. He'd seen lilac eyes amongst the concerned gazes, unless he'd imagined that.

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 3,532,767 XP and 64,150L!]**

Jaune gaped at that.

 **[You have reached Level 45 and gained 20 Stat Points!]**

 **[Skills have leveled!]**

 **[For surviving an incredibly dangerous situation, gain +2 to all stats!]**

Another thing Jaune couldn't bring himself to complain about. Twenty Stat Points would certainly come in handy, especially considering it had doubled his total Stat Points he'd been saving.

That wasn't even the last of the notifications, though. There was a particularly long screen detailing all the loot he'd acquired, and he was very interested to give that a read.

 **[Loot Acquired!]**

 **[18 Inert Dust, 4 Beowolf Pelts, 4 Beowolf Claws, 1 Beowolf Skull, 4 Alpha Beowolf Claws, 2 Ursa Pelts, 10 Ursa Claws, 3 Ursa Skulls, 1 Ursa Major Pelt, 3 Ursa Major Spines, 1 Boarbatusk Tusk, 2 Creep Hides, 4 Creep Bones, 2 Griffon Pelts, 5 Griffon Claws, 12 Tough Scrap Metal, 21 Circuitry Components, 3 AK-200 Optical Units, 7 Grade II Energy Dust Crystals, 1 Paladin Optical Unit.]**

That was a lot. Like, a legitimate amount of loot. A proper amount. And there was still a second page.

 **[Rare Loot Acquired!]**

 **[2 Minor Potions of Healing, 2 Curin Seeds, 4 Thasgade Seeds, 1 Rinade Herb, 2 Grade III Gravity Dust Crystals.]**

Gods, now Jaune had to sort his inventory. It was a cluttered mess. He needed tabs, or folders, or something. That would definitely be appreciated at this point.

Some of the things he'd acquired also hinted at future skills, seeds in particular. He wasn't a hundred percent sure he was going to enjoy a Farming skill, but then again, it could be a pleasant change of pace. It really depended on how the System affected it.

There was one final notification sitting there, and he dismissed the previous screen, reading the final notice.

 **[DLC Content Unlocked!]**

 **[Frozen Wastes Unlocked! Bloodsport Unlocked! Bestiary Unlocked! Burning Sands Unlocked!]**

DLC? Really?

Jaune shook his head to himself as he lifted himself off of the couch, quickly finding his way to the front door and stepping out, once again inhaling the fresh morning air.

DLC. Was that really what his life had come to? He supposed this was just like whenever the System updated, but with more things, which raised a few concerns. Was his semblance manipulating the world to such a degree that it was changing it at his whim? Or, even more concerning, someone else's whims?

Footsteps drew him out of his thoughts as he kept his view towards the sunrise.

"Feeling any better, kid?"

Taiyang, Ruby and Yang's father. A person he had no memory of sharing a conversation with. At least, no cohesive memory.

"Much better. Thanks for the help, sir."

"You don't remember much about last night, do you?" Tai asked, looking to the younger blond.

Jaune shook his head. "A lot of it's a blur. Last thing I have any concrete memory of is up on the tower. Right before…"

Tai nodded to himself. "Thought as much. You were barely able to focus last night, though that isn't exactly a big surprise. You were, well, unconscious for two weeks."

Jaune swiveled, looking at the older man in surprise. "Two weeks? It didn't feel that long."

Tai quirked an eyebrow at that. "That's probably because you were unconscious."

Jaune shook his head. "Not the entire time, I don't think. There was a voice. Voices."

"You sure you didn't get hit on the head back up on that tower?"

"Doesn't matter now, I guess. Must've been a dream of some sort, that's all."

Tai let out a small laugh at that. "Well, you had plenty of time to do that, I guess. Come back inside, I'll whip up some breakfast. You can wake the rest of 'em."

Jaune followed him back inside, closing the door behind him.

"Guest rooms are down the hall, Yang and Ruby have the upstairs rooms."

Jaune nodded, already heading down the hall, only to bump into Ren as he exited his small borrowed room.

They were quick to exchange pleasantries, Ren quickly assuring Jaune that he would wake Nora in his place, and Jaune was ever-so-grateful for that. He wasn't familiar with the routine that RRYN upheld, and frankly he felt a little bit like a stranger.

He took the stairs one at a time and quickly knocked on Yang's door, thankful that the girl was already awake, her response not even waiting for him to say anything.

Last but definitely not least, Ruby.

He knocked twice, the staccato resounding throughout the room on the other side of the door.

The door swung itself open under his fist, and he stepped inside, closing the door behind him.

What did he say? How did he even begin this conversation?

A greeting would have to suffice.

"Hey, Ruby."

She was toying with the scroll in her hand until he knocked, and she'd put it aside, but not looked towards the door. When he'd spoken, though, that was enough to get her full attention.

He was hit in the chest by a Ruby-shaped projectile as she wrapped her arms around his midsection, nearly knocking him to the floor.

She almost seemed surprised to see him, which came as a shock. He was quick to wrap his arms around her, coiling her into a tight hug.

"I- I thought I'd killed you!" She exclaimed tearfully, unable to meet his eyes.

Jaune shook his head. "C'mon, it couldn't have been that bad, right?"

That time Ruby did meet his eyes. "You- you don't remember?"

Another shake from the blond answered the question, but he delved deeper. "I've got a couple snippets from last night, but that's it."

Ruby disentangled herself from him, stepping back in mute shock. "I…"

Jaune gave her a small smile. "Come downstairs, we can have breakfast and you can get me up to speed on what I missed."

She looked to the side, and Jaune placed a hand on her arm, trailing it down to grasp her hand firmly. "Whatever happened, whatever you did, it saved my life, Ruby. Thank you for that."

Her half-hearted smile would have to be enough for now as he stepped back, opening the door. "We'll be waiting for you, but, uh, you might wanna be a little bit fast. I haven't eaten in two weeks, apparently."

Ruby let out a quiet laugh. "We tried to get you some food last night, but you passed out before it was ready."

Jaune grinned. "C'mon, your Dad's cooking can't be that bad."

* * *

A plate of freshly made waffles greeted him as he took one of the empty seats, and he nodded a thanks to the man who'd made them, hastily digging in.

Gods, it tasted good, too. He had to imagine that anything tasted better when you hadn't eaten in weeks.

Ruby had joined the assembled group moments later, her father handing her a plate, and she'd taken the empty seat next to Jaune, eating a lot slower than he was.

Jaune quickly resolved himself, and bit the bullet. "So, get me up to speed. What'd I miss? What happened?"

There was a pause as everyone else shared various glances, and Jaune put his fork down, interlacing his fingers. "I need to know. Don't hold anything back, just tell me."

"Where do we even start? So much happened in a short time," Yang started, before giving a shrug.

"At the beginning might help," Jaune said deadpan, as Ruby put down her own plate.

"I turned you to stone."

That, well, Jaune had definitely not been expecting that. "What?"

Realising that she should probably elaborate, Ruby continued. "When we were up on the tower, and Cinder was about to release that arrow, something in me… clicked. Everything went white, and I woke up here."

Tai took over for his daughter. "Qrow found her at the top of the tower with both the Wyvern and you turned to stone. Cinder was nowhere to be seen, but I suspect she didn't make it out of there in one piece. It took some effort, but he got you and Ruby to one of the evacuation craft, and got you here. That was two weeks ago."

Jaune was a little stunned. "Huh. Explains why I felt so weird, I guess. What about the rest of AWBN?"

That was met with more silence, until Ren spoke up. "Weiss and Blake were in Patch for a short time, until they left."

Jaune felt one hand clench into a fist on his knee, but he allowed himself to relax. "What happened?"

"Weiss's father arrived with a cavalcade of soldiers, and demanded her return to Atlas. She wasn't exactly in a position to refuse," Ren answered.

"Didn't help that the soldiers were nearly causing a civil war with their presence in the evacuation center," Tai muttered.

"And Blake?" Jaune asked.

Ruby answered him this time. "All she said was she had some things she needed to work out. She left a few days ago."

Jaune sighed. "What about Pyrrha?"

The following silence was even more disconcerting, until Yang broke it. "She's in Mistral."

Jaune ran a hand through his hair. "I know that all this is difficult, but can we stop dodging around every gods-damned thing about it? Just tell it to me straight, please. This is my team we're talking about."

Yang met his eyes. "Pyrrha's gone back to Mistral somewhere, to live with her family. She's comatose."

Jaune stood up and stepped outside, door shutting behind him loudly.

He kept walking, further and further out of the yard, boots plodding against the worn dirt road that laid out the front of the property.

His mind was running free, yet no coherent thought amassed itself into the forefront of his head. He was just angry.

He stopped walking and brought his hand to the ground, _Terrakinesis_ carving a flat bench out of the ground, upon which he took a seat.

"Jaune…"

Ruby had followed him out, and he pushed his hair out of his face once more. "I know. I just needed some air."

She took a seat next to him, wrapping an arm around his midsection. "We'll get them back, Jaune."

Jaune shook his head. "No. Pyrrha's injured, Blake left, and Weiss did too, though that wasn't her first choice. Besides, they all most likely think I'm dead."

Ruby's eyes widened at that. "No, they just-"

Jaune met her eyes. "I don't blame you, Ruby. You saved my life. I won't let you forget that. But they still think I'm petrified."

He could see the sadness on Ruby's face. "Jaune-"

"It's fine, Ruby. We need to focus on the present, not the future."

Ruby wiped her eyes, nodding. "Okay. What's the plan?"

Jaune shrugged. "I don't know."

* * *

 **Well, uh. That was the Book 1 epilogue, I guess. Is that what I'm calling it now? Book 2 will pick up right where Book 1 left off, and let's be honest, I may need to take a week to plan and figure out what's going on, so if there is no chapter next week, that's why. I'm still gonna try, don't get me wrong.**

 **Anyway, I'm gonna move straight into reviews. A few less than usual, this thing's gotta get edited and posted ASAP.**

* * *

 **Karmic Acumen: To be fair, I never claimed I was some writing-god who'd descended to provide the world with the best written fanfic the universe would ever see. I'm an amateur writer who started this passion project on a whim. Hope you find something more to your tastes though.**

 **Shadow of God: That is primarily what Book 2 is going to be about, vertical growth. Book 1 was very much a 'figuring out everything Jaune has access to' sort of thing, pushing the limits and such, and Book 2 is going to focus more on the developing of currently established skills, along with a few new ones for a little bit of pre-established variety. And let's just say I have a plan for Neo, as long as the upcoming canon doesn't throw that out of whack too much.**

 **dirtrevor: :P**

 **Tsu no mumei: Afraid that sometimes, things just don't work out that way. Don't get me wrong, I have plans for Jaune and the Wyvern for a later point.**

 **typhonyx: Cinder is surprisingly hard to write for me. She's tough to properly nail, I guess, but I hope to work her character out sooner rather than later.**

* * *

 **That's gonna be all for this week, sorry if I didn't respond to your review, I've been awake for nearly 20 hours now trying to get this chapter done. At least it's a Friday. Well, now it's a Saturday, but still.**

 **I have a Pat reon AFatFlyingWhale if you feel like supporting me in any way, I'd definitely appreciate it.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	57. Pesky Little Nevermore

**I know, I know, I said I might be taking a week to plan, but let's be honest, I can't not do another chapter. I enjoy writing this stuff too much sometimes. Also I needed to stop playing Beat Saber, my arms are on fire.**

 **Thanks to both Maxstroid and Justas Kondrusevicius for supporting me this month!**

* * *

Patch was not free from Grimm. Nowhere was free from Grimm, of course, but the point remained. Someone, or some people, had to be responsible for clearing them from the island on a regular basis.

Jaune had volunteered as soon as he could. He needed to get out of the house, and as welcoming as the atmosphere was, it was almost stifling. He had no real way to relieve stress, and killing Grimm was a great way to do so.

Ruby had offered to tag along, but Jaune had turned her down, his excuse of 'needing some time to think' being accepted with a kind smile, his girlfriend wishing him good hunting.

He had to admit, Patch was beautiful in a countryside kind of way. It wasn't anywhere near as big as Vale, and the surrounding landscape ended abruptly often, cliffs down to a roiling ocean giving the air that salty-seaside smell that made the air incredibly refreshing.

It was also plagued by some of the most annoying Grimm Jaune had ever come across.

The smallest Nevermore were, arguably, harder for him to deal with than the larger variety, because he couldn't hit the damn things.

They were remarkably low-leveled, only level 10, but he was starting to get really frustrated as the swarm of birds avoided another barrage of _Mana Bullets_ , and he swore under his breath.

They weren't coming close enough for him to hit them with a _Mana Blast_ or something equally close-range, instead pelting him with small, sharp black feathers.

How did Vale normally deal with these pesky birds?

The answer, and the answer to his own problem, came to him in a single moment. Vale used Anti-air cannons mounted on the walls. Or, rather, Vale had used them.

Jaune formed a _Mana Bolt_ in his hand and, much the same as he had all that time ago, he morphed it, his control so much better than the first time he'd tried modifying a spell like this. His modification was much like a _Mana Grenade_ , a compact shell of Mana surrounding much more unstable Mana.

He pointed up at the swarm, and released.

The _Mana Flak_ fired into the air and splintered in a small pop that sent fragments of Mana throughout the air, superheated magic burning through black flesh and killing many of the damned Nevermore that had been plaguing him for a few minutes now.

He fired a second and followed it up with a third for good measure, and then relaxed. He'd never been more thankful for a new spell.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Mana Flak (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can fire a bolt of Mana into the air, where it will explode into fragments of Mana. Useful for shooting down incoming aerial projectiles. Costs 150 MP per shot._ _ **Level 15; XP 35,700/40,500.**_ **]**

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You've gained 168,000XP and 6,000 Lien!]**

 **[Loot Acquired: 2 Inert Dust, 15 Nevermore Feathers, 7 Nevermore Talons, 1 Nevermore Skull.]**

 **[Rare Loot Acquired: 2 Anaxis Seeds, 9 Abiare Herbs.]**

It'd been a small but productive encounter. Nevermore were good for XP, who'd've guessed?

Not only that, but the six-thousand Lien had just ticked him over the hundred-thousand threshold, and upgraded a title.

 **[Title Upgraded!]**

 **[Silver Banker has become Gold Banker!]**

 **[Gold Banker: All Lien gained is increased by 40%! Hold 250,000L to upgrade further!]**

He definitely appreciated that. More Lien was always a good thing, he wasn't going to turn that down.

His patrol had taken him out along the western border of Patch, the less trodden parts of the island, furthest from Vale. All he could see to his west was the ocean, stretching as far as the eye could see. It was, all in all, peaceful, despite the occasional Grimm.

It was also devoid of people, something he was thankful for. No one was watching him, so he could relax and simply deal with threats as he needed to, without worrying about what people might think.

Then again, it wasn't like it had made a difference.

People he cared about had still gotten hurt, even though he'd kept his Semblance hidden. Did it really matter anymore?

People were going to get hurt anyway. Keeping it to himself was just going to get more people hurt in the long run, because he'd be limited.

"Screw it," Jaune said aloud to himself, kicking a small rock off the cliff edge and into the ocean below. "I'm done hiding."

He was, too. He wasn't going to go belting out his power to anybody even partially willing to listen, of course, he knew the strength of hidden tricks, but he was going to use those hidden tricks when he needed to, consequences be damned.

He kicked another pebble off the cliff, watching as it soared off into the distance.

Man, something had to be said about the healing power of ocean-side views. Looking at it now, he couldn't help but stare in amazement.

Remnant was dangerous. It was deadly, and it could be horrible to those that inhabited it.

It was also stunningly gorgeous.

* * *

Patrol finished, Jaune was on his way back to the Xiao Long household, fingers tapping a steady beat on the grip on Crocea Mors as he walked, humming to himself.

His other hand formed Soul Orbs slowly but steadily, as he had been for the majority of his patrol. Not only was it a good way to kill time, but it was a good way to help his summoning, too.

Perhaps when he reached a certain level with _Soul Harvest_ he could figure out what to do with the Steel Puppet's Soul Orb that was sitting in his inventory.

He managed to make 31 Greater Soul Orbs before he reached the Xiao Long household, which was indicative of the current amount of Ambient Aura that lingered in Patch, and how far it was he'd patrolled. It was also enough to bring him up to Level 49, which he appreciated quite a bit.

He stepped into the yard and stretched his arms, a yawn escaping his lips. It was mid-morning when he'd departed, and mid-afternoon now, as he was returning, which meant, above all else, he was desperate in his search for lunch.

The door, well-made but still old, creaked as he opened it, and Ruby looked over from the couch, screen projecting some news she'd been in the middle of watching, Zwei in her lap. "Hey, Jaune. How was hunting?"

Jaune hung Crocea Mors up on the weapon rack, placing his boots by Ruby's own pair as he replied. "Good. Only really found a swarm of small Nevermore, but they're worth a bit of XP, so it wasn't all bad. Where is everyone?"

"Dad headed out to help Qrow at the evacuation center, and Ren and Nora said they'd go with him to help out. Yang's upstairs in her room. She's still not supposed to be up and about, or so says the doctor, and despite how much she says she's fine, she does need rest," Ruby answered, placing Zwei on the cushion next to her and getting up. "Want some food? I was just about to make something."

Jaune nodded. "That'd be great, yeah. Is Yang doing okay?"

Ruby gave a so-so motion with her hand. "She's getting there. The burns have all mostly healed, and it's just raw pink skin, but, well, she lost her arm. It's going to take some getting used to before she's back to full strength."

Jaune hummed in thought. "I don't think there's anything I can do to restore her arm, either, which is a shame. Still, there are plenty of Hunters out there who've lost limbs in combat. They offer a bunch of prosthetic replacements, or at least, most Kingdoms do. With Vale still undergoing repairs, I doubt that prosthetics are top of their priorities."

Ruby nodded. "Yeah, that's what I said. Yang said she'd think about it, though, so that's progress."

Ruby grabbed a bunch of things out of the various cupboards and some foodstuffs out of the fridge, setting about making some sandwiches. "Can you slice some of that leftover lamb?"

Jaune took the proffered knife and set about doing just that, slicing the roast lamb into thin slices as Ruby sliced some fresh bread into rough slabs before moving onto the cheese.

"So, what's next on your agenda? Figure you've always got something to do with your semblance," Ruby asked, assembling part of the sandwiches.

"More summons, I think," Jaune began, adding to the sandwich prep. "I've got a bunch of Soul Orbs from my patrol, and a few new Grimm drops, along with a Gravity Dust Crystal. Should be able to get three new summons if the costs aren't too high."

Ruby couldn't help the grin that formed on her face. "Yay, more furry friends! At some point you're just gonna be able to summon an army."

Jaune laughed. "Yeah, that's the plan. The unstoppable Arc Armada. The Arcmada!"

"Please don't call it that."

Jaune took one of the finished sandwiches, biting into it and reveling in the satisfying taste. "Mmf. Good."

Ruby rolled her eyes at him, placing her own on a plate and the third on another. "I'm gonna take this up to Yang, see if she wants it. You gonna get started on the summoning?"

Jaune nodded as he swallowed the chunk of deliciousness. "Yeah, will do."

As Ruby took the stairs two at a time, plate in hand, Jaune made his way to the front door, slipping his boots on and stepping out into the mid-afternoon sun once more, taking another bite of sandwich as he opened his inventory.

First, Jaune picked out one of the Griffon Claws, placing it on the _Terrakinesis-_ created pattern on the ground, and checked what the ritual would require.

He quickly followed it up with 10 Greater Soul Orbs, as the ritual demanded, and activated it.

The air began to shimmer as the ritual began, the glow expanding outwards until, standing in front of Jaune, was a golden-furred Griffon, blue eyes staring at his own from its bone-plate-beaked head.

A name floated into his consciousness, and he spoke, greeting the creature. "Hello, Shirdal. Welcome to the family."

It stood roughly up to his neck, so not exactly small, but still much smaller than a regular Griffon, so he withdrew another Greater Soul Orb and held it out to Shirdal, who quickly scooped it up in his beak and broke it, the shattered orb releasing a golden glow that encompassed the summon quickly.

The golden glow expanded, increasing in size until it faded, and Shirdal stood before him, much larger than before, golden feathers shining in the sunlight.

 **[You've unlocked a new Perk!]**

 **[Aureate:** _Your connection with the soul of a Griffon gives you an increased Lien drop rate._ **]**

Today's common theme was Lien, apparently.

Ruby stepped outside to see Shirdal, a stunned expression on her face. "Woah. He's big."

Said summon nestled his head into Jaune's outstretched hand, fading into nothingness. "Yeah, that's Shirdal."

He took another bite of sandwich as he checked what the next ritual would require, both eyebrows arching in surprise. "Huh. I don't have enough Soul Orbs for the next ritual. I'm gonna have to make more."

Ruby tilted her head. "I don't think I've ever seen you actually make a Soul Orb before. What's it look like?"

Jaune gave his girlfriend a cheeky grin. "This." He outstretched his hand, palm upwards, and Ruby watched in awe as golden-white energy seemed to swirl around, coalescing into a single ball in his hand.

He was going to make five more. Four for what the ritual required, and one to turn the next summon from Minor to Greater.

He made three before _Soul Harvest_ reached Level 50, and then he realised that he was now capable of making Grand Soul Orbs. He didn't know if Grand Soul Orbs were compatible, so he decided to ignore that for now, and continue to make the remaining two he needed.

He placed the twenty-five Greater Soul Orbs on the dirt inside the used ritual circle, and with them he placed a Nevermore Feather, before stepping back, Ruby doing much the same.

The sigil, much like before, began to spin and glow, the golden-white energy forming the silhouette of a small bird, what looked like a raven, shiny black feathers glistening in the sunlight.

Another name, much like before, was suddenly in the forefront of his mind. "Hi Apollo."

Apollo cawed in reply, hopping forward, tilting his head to the side. A flutter of wings had Apollo hop from the ground up to Jaune's extended arm, perching there.

Jaune quickly finished the last remaining chunk of sandwich and used his now free hand to reach into his inventory and withdraw the final Greater Soul Orb, holding it out for the bird.

Apollo gave it a single peck, beak piercing the orb quickly, before hopping off Jaune's arm and landing on the ground with ease, even as his form was awash with golden-white light.

Jaune took a few steps back, and then a few more as Apollo grew larger and larger, until he was nearly the size of a Bullhead, the large head of the bird looking at him in curiosity.

"Wow, he got big fast," Ruby said, staring wide-eyed at the large bird that was even bigger than Alcmena, if only just.

"What the-" Yang said aloud from inside the house, having looked out her window, quickly sliding it open. "Jaune?"

"Hey Yang! Meet Apollo!" He replied, a laugh on the edge of his lips.

Apollo cawed loudly, and the laugh spilled from his lips. "Gods, you're big."

 **[You've unlocked a new Perk!]**

 **[Shadowcloak:** _Your connection with the soul of a Nevermore allows you to almost become unnoticeable when in darkness._ **]**

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[Grimm Trainer]**

 **[** _ **Have 8 Greater Bound Souls.**_ **]**

 **[Reward: Choose from either Beastial Skill Book or Sentient Skill Book.]**

Jaune quickly read through the notifications, putting the choice off to the side for a moment before dismissing Apollo, once again getting some breathing room in the front garden.

The door behind Ruby and Jaune opened and Yang stepped out, half-struggling to put her hair up.

Ruby quickly moved to help her sister, despite Yang's half-hearted objections, and Jaune quickly checked another ritual.

He wasn't done yet, not by a long shot.

"So, what's with all the summoning, pet-store?" Yang asked, and Jaune spared the time to glance at Yang with derision.

"That's the nickname you've given me now?"

Yang shrugged. "If the shoe fits."

Jaune turned back, recarving the ritual into the ground from where it had nearly faded. "I figured that I wasn't strong enough, back at Beacon. I spent so long trying to figure all of this out, and it cost me. No more taking it cautious, no more hiding. I'm going to get as powerful as possible as fast as possible. And if that means overwhelming people with a horde, then that's what I'll do."

He stepped back, one of the Grade III Gravity Dust Crystals and 5 Minor Soul Orbs sitting in the center of the ritual sigil.

It began to glow, the crystal expanding and growing, more expanding from the single, central core.

"Meet Gravitus," Jaune said, as the Gravity Elemental stepped out of the sigil, black crystals seeming to bend light around it's near eight foot figure, almost appearing distorted when they looked at it, like it had a layer of fuzz around it. Dirt seemed to float slightly off the ground near where its feet stood, too.

"You know, that's still really strange," Yang remarked, whereas Ruby was trying to contain her excitement.

"It's so cool!" She burst out, unable to completely contain it. She was, at least, not so out-of-control that she rushed over to hug it. Jaune wasn't completely sure what touching any of his Elementals might do, so it was best no one did that until he'd had time to test that.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Blackhole (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, your Gravity Elemental is capable of emitting a gravitational pull that draws anything nearby into it, crushing them under immense gravitational force._ _ **Level 1; 0/12.**_ **]**

Jaune dismissed Gravitus, the crystalline structure seeming to distort until it was no longer there, the gravitational anomaly that it was fading too, the dirt hitting the ground with a faint puff of dust.

He brought up the quest notification, staring at the choice of rewards. "Which sounds better, Beastial or Sentient?"

Ruby and Yang shared a glance of confusion.

"Beastial?" Ruby ventured. "You said a horde, so…"

Jaune nodded, accepting the reward.

A skill book dropped into his hand, out of thin air, startling Yang a little, though she'd never admit it.

Jaune was quick to read it, the book glowing blueish-white before disintegrating into the air, much to Jaune's shock. "Huh, they never did that before."

However, he was soon distracted.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Beastial Bound Evolution (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are able to evolve your Greater Bound Souls into a more powerful beastial version of themselves. Costs 1 Nigredo to cast._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[Soul Trainer]**

 **[** _ **Have 12 Greater Bound Souls.**_ **]**

 **[Reward: Sentient Bound Soul Skill]**

Well, that was a lot to take in. Jaune didn't even know what a Nigredo was, but the word struck a chime of familiarity in him.

Suddenly, he knew why, as he checked through a few menus.

Right there, in his Alchemy list, of all the alchemical products he could create, was Nigredo, whatever that was. Apparently it cost 5 parts from any Grimm and an Alchemic Reagent.

So, Jaune was going to need alcohol and a chemistry station of some description. Something for later, he guessed.

"So, uh, now what?" Ruby asked, tilting her head to the side slightly.

Jaune shrugged. "Dunno. Movie?"

* * *

Yang left the two to enjoy the movie Ruby had picked, an action-filled film jam-packed with bad dialogue and even worse writing, something she normally would have enjoyed on any given day.

Now, though, she'd leave the couple to enjoy it together, instead choosing to step outside and walk over to the shed that lay in the backyard, crossing the well-worn dirt sparring ring her father had set up all those years ago and stepping onto lush grass, unlatching the lock with only minor difficulty.

She flinched as the reverberating bass of an explosion sounded from inside the house, followed quickly by Ruby's seemingly-animated cheering, voice carrying out over the yard.

The one-handed grip on the shed door relaxed, and Yang frowned as she stepped inside, fist clenched.

Inside were her two pride and joys, her bike Bumblebee, and her weapon, Ember Celica. Not that she could realistically use either of them, now. A motorcycle, sure, it was possible to drive with one arm, and sure, it was possible to punch with one arm, but both lacked the effect.

There wasn't all that much point in it, now, aside from keeping her attention.

She never had Ruby's pure genius when it came to mechanical engineering, nor her obsession with weaponry, but that didn't mean that Yang didn't enjoy messing with mechanics. Bumblebee was evidence of that, the bike sitting still and yet, at the same time, inexplicably expressing a number of emotions.

She needed a tune-up, that was for sure. The last time she'd ridden her had been back before the Vytal Festival, and she'd thrown her around quite a bit. There wasn't any visible damage, but Yang knew that there were a multitude of issues she'd have to iron out.

First, she had to remove the custom exterior panelling, which meant she had to reach underneath and unlatch each plate, which, when working with a single hand, was far more time consuming than it should have been.

At one point, simply because she didn't have another hand to brace the panel, it dropped to the ground with a clang, the edge bending in as it dented.

She swore under her breath, fist clenched. This was a learning experience. She was going to make mistakes. Costly mistakes, each of those panels were a pain to get replaced, and that was when Vale was still a bustling metropolis on any given day. Now, well, it was going to be a while before business was back up and running.

Now, though, she had all the panels off, which meant that checking every component for defects or damage was going to be much easier, because she could see it.

It was something her father had made sure to drill into both daughters heads. 'Preventative maintenance' he'd call it. At the time Yang had ignored the advice, figuring that if something went wrong, she'd fix it or figure something else out.

Now, though, she realised the truth. Sometimes there was no other way. Sometimes, it just had to happen that way.

She'd thrown herself in the firing line.

She clenched her fist again, fingernails digging into her palm.

She'd demanded that she go with Pyrrha. She'd gone down into that pit.

She'd been overwhelmed by that bitch of a woman Cinder. She'd had her semblance overwhelmed, unable to land any attack that wasn't redirected.

The entire time Ozpin had spent working away at that console instead of turning to help her. That hadn't exactly helped him in the end, either, and Yang didn't really care.

She'd expected help. From Pyrrha, or from Ozpin, or someone, anyone else. No one had been there. It was just her and the enemy.

And the enemy had wiped the floor with her, scattered her aside, and hit her with a blast of flame that, whilst not as strong as what she'd been told was used afterwards, was still enough to leave her with burns that she took with her arm first.

If she hadn't thrown her arm in front of her face Yang didn't know what would have happened to her. Serious facial scars, if she'd survived at all. She wasn't Jaune, she couldn't regenerate lost body parts, as much as she wished.

Yang relaxed her fist again, grabbing a wrench to loosen a particularly stubborn component. The air filter was damaged, something had skipped off the ground and bent a bunch of the fins inwards, sealing a part of the intake.

The burn scars itched still. It hadn't gone away, even when her Aura had returned to full. She wanted to scratch at them, but it would only exacerbate both the injuries and the itching. It wasn't like she could scratch at her torso, shoulders and arms all at once, either.

It was all she could do to keep her hands busy.

Hand busy. Still getting used to that.

"Stupid gods-damned-" Yang swore, twisting hard. The part refused to come off, and she nearly screamed, throwing the wrench out into the yard.

"You should be resting."

The voice was unexpected, and it caught the young woman off-guard. Yang spun, surprise on her face. "Dad? When did you get home?"

Tai shrugged. "Few minutes ago. Jaune and Ruby were asleep on the couch, so I figured I wouldn't disturb them, they need the rest too."

Had she really been in the shed for that long?

"I'm fine," Yang said, answering the unspoken question. "I just needed something to do."

"I get that, but you should be in bed. You haven't finished recovering, and-"

"I said I'm fine!" Yang exclaimed, turning back to her bike.

Tai quirked an eyebrow. "Yeah, you sounded fine."

Yang curled her fingers into a fist, slowly uncurling them immediately afterwards, repeating the process. "I need to stay busy."

Tai stepped in the shed and leaned against the table. "Right. Less time to think about what happened. Because that would be healthy, talking about what happened. Better to just bottle it all up and never speak of it, that does wonders for mental health."

"Says the guy who won't even tell me about my mother."

Tai stalled at that, his pre-planned comeback dying on his lips. "It isn't-"

"I'm just working on Bumblebee, Dad. That's all. I'm not going out on patrol, I'm not throwing myself at anything and everything I can, I'm just doing some maintenance. That's all."

A few seconds passed before Tai spoke up, after letting out a lengthy sigh. "Okay. I'll be inside, making some dinner. Qrow's bringing the rest of your team back tonight, and we can all get ourselves properly up to speed on what's going to happen. If you aren't inside by then, I'll come get you."

Yang didn't respond with words, instead nodding.

"Oh, and you'll probably need this."

Yang took the wrench without looking.

* * *

Qrow staggered in the door with his usual lack of social grace, bumping against the frame as he nearly gouged a chunk out of the wall with Harbinger as he placed it on the rack, a tired Ren and a seemingly dampened Nora following him inside like two lost children.

Something hadn't gone to plan after Tai had left, obviously.

"What happened?"

The question left his lips and already he could tell he wasn't going to like the answer.

"Idiots, the lot of them," was Qrow's response. That definitely didn't hold any hope.

"That doesn't really explain much, Qrow."

"Murder."

His blood ran cold. "What happened. Details, Qrow, this is important."

"Nothing much to tell. Some asshole thought some other, much poorer asshole stole his stuff. The other guy, looked like a dog faunus, said he hadn't done it. Rich dude pulled a gun, started threatening the faunus. Faunus said he wasn't going to cower just 'cause some dude was threatening to kill him."

Tai paled.

"Rich dude didn't like that much, and he pulled the trigger. Clipped the faunus in the head, no Aura, dead in an instant."

Ren and Nora lowered their heads even further, not meeting anyone's eyes.

"Shit," Tai swore, slamming one hand down on the bench. "What then?"

Qrow shrugged. "Rich asshole got tackled by the faunus's friends and beaten to death in response. So, good news, no one to arrest."

Tai had almost forgotten about Qrow's apathetic sense of macabre humor. Almost.

"Qrow."

Qrow was halfway through his flask before he replied. "Yeah, yeah. Clean-up's been practically abandoned. They're throwing everyone back into Vale with a bunch of hired guns to kill any straggling Grimm. Fend for themselves sort of thing. No more donating supplies we don't have, at least."

Tai ran one hand through his hair. "Kids, one of you go grab Jaune and Ruby, one of you go grab Yang, she's out in the backyard. Dinner's almost ready."

Tai knew that he needed to get these two to do something other than wallow in their own misery.

As Nora and Ren made their way out, Tai grabbed Qrow by the shoulder. "You didn't think of doing anything to help those two out?"

Qrow shrugged. "World's cruel. They'd better get used to that, fast, otherwise they aren't cut out to do this sort of work."

"Starting to sound like Rae."

The man's head snapped up in an instant. "You don't get to say that sort of stuff, Tai."

"Yeah? Well, the world's cruel. Get used to it."

Qrow scowled, but Tai was already turning away, reaching into the oven and withdrawing a tray of roasted vegetables. "You know what we have to talk about tonight, right?"

Qrow took another sip from his flask. "Yeah, yeah. I know. You're the expert, though."

Tai took another tray, this time laden with a roast chicken, out of the oven, placing it next to the prior tray. "Hardly. I barely know anymore than you do."

If there was one thing Tai had to give the young man, it was that Jaune had impeccable timing for moments like these. "Mmm, smells good."

Ruby, Jaune and Nora stepped into the main room, and Tai was glad to notice that the day's events seemed to be no longer in the forefront of the ginger girl's mind as she noticed the food.

It was only moments later that Ren, Yang in tow, stepped inside.

"Pull up seats, and dig in," Tai ordered, and the group quickly did so, slices of chicken joining roasted potatoes and other vegetables as they began to eat.

It was nearly ten minutes before Tai spoke once more. "Ruby, I've got something to discuss with you and everyone else."

Ruby, with a mouthful of roasted parsnip, looked up at her father in surprise. "Wha?"

Tai quirked an eyebrow at the girl, who promptly finished the mouthful. "Sorry, Dad. What is it?"

"It's about your eyes."

That grabbed the attention of the whole table.

Well, aside from Qrow, who was finishing his flask. Typical.

* * *

 **First things first, I feel like I need to calm some of you down. Don't worry, I'm doing some deliberate messing with canon as a whole, but I'm not making any significantly obtuse changes. Just some things that fall more in line with where Systema sits. Remnant is a little different than canon, that's something I've been gently pushing since the beginning. I'm making sure to explain my actions, but I'm not going to do something that significant outside of a chapter, so patience may be necessary. I can't just start throwing every little bit of information at you, and subsequently, the characters, without first giving some context to the information.**

 **Anyways, rant out of the way, let me just say that I really do appreciate you guys pointing this stuff out. Most of the time it's me being an idiot, don't worry, but the 1% is me making a deliberate change or adjustment.**

 **Now, onto reviews!**

 **DuplicateUserName: Jaune's already pretty OP. Giving him the Silver Eyes would be, well, it'd be a bit much. Does give me an idea for a quick one-shot though.**

 **Fyr RedNight: I'm a really, really bad cook, so I literally had to look up a recipe for omelettes. Turns out there's more to them than I expected, too.**

 **zatchpotter: To be fair, and this is a really thinly-veiled excuse, but even boosting a single stat by 20 doesn't do all that much in the grand scheme of things. The way damage is calculated is a stock number multiplied by level, then further increased by a bunch of modifiers. INT is one of the modifiers in spell damage, and even if it suddenly found itself boosted by 20, the modifier is equal to Player INT divided by 20. So, it'd end up being +1 to the modifier. Would that have made a difference? Not enough to really change the way things panned out. But, I will make sure to stay on top of it from now on, as my forgetfulness is starting to become a serious hindrance in my writing, and when I have so many things to track I'm going to have to figure out a few ways to keep an eye on that.**

 **razmire: Who knows, maybe. (I'm still kinda unsure on how that's all going to play out, I guess we'll see.)**

 **Pokemon5191: Absolutely. I'll try and consolidate it at the very bottom of the chapter.**

 **F14M3RZ: Refer to the above rant :P**

 **FrostyChops: Are you kidding me I've had that Farming skill in the works for like a month. I think I'm more excited than anyone else at this point.**

 **Shadow of God: Refer to the above rant :P (I might have to say this a few more times oh no.)**

 **jedimasterb10: Oh, I've got some things planned for the inevitable Jacq-ass-ening that is coming at some point. Possibly an explosion or two, not really sure how it's going to all work just yet.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Haven't quite time-skipped just yet, but that might not even happen just yet. With Jaune's rapid growth, a timeskip could take him from Level 45 to 80 in like a month. (I don't actually know how long it would take there's a hell of a lot of math behind that.) Your ideas, though, you've practically read my mind. Sort of.**

 **Ferdiad: Refer to the above rant (Third time's the charm :P)**

 **hirshja: It's one thing to see something on TV and another to have it inside your house and looking similar to the thing you've been trained to kill your entire life. And that's saying that Tai even cares about the tournament, aside from when his daughters are fighting.**

 **Dragon Hunter: Thanks! I'd imagine that, despite the fact that I didn't address it, his HP would have most likely regenerated. That is, however, subject to change if I say it is. Don't want to accidentally trap myself in a plot hole. I do that enough as it is.**

 **IcyStream: I have 30 summons in total sitting in the spreadsheet. It's a nice, even, round number. But, you know what? I gotchu fam. I'll make it 32, for the sake of simplicity.**

 **Temsen: Yeah, that's my bad. I should've been a lot clearer, but I was running on no sleep and a bunch of shitty ideas that I was constantly having to edit out. Too many bad plans that didn't work. She was escorted back to her family, and is currently comatose.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: I've been messing with some of the characters for some time, now, especially the main eight. Nora and Ren haven't had all that much screen-time, to be fair, but I have been pushing a few characters down a few different directions, and now with the sudden separation, we're going to see some more significant changes amongst many similarities. I just gotta figure out how it's all going to play out. Might have to rewatch Volumes 4 through 6 again.**

 **typhonyx: Refer to the above rant. I'll be explaining all sorts of things over the next couple chapters, and we're going to be separating from the Jaune POV in certain chapters so I can develop other characters, too. I'd originally wanted to only ever be from Jaune's perspective when I started writing Systema, and quickly found that it doesn't work all that great for the story I'm trying to tell. It'll start to add up soon, I promise.**

 **Guest: Woah, that's a block of text and a half haha. Something I've noticed about the Brothers is that they seem to almost be replicating the divide of Ozma and Salem with the divide of Humanity and Faunus. It all plays out as some kind of Old-Testament punishment of a sort. Or at least it's supposed to be reminiscent of that sort of thing.**

 **armentho: For the sake of expanding on what I said previously to zatchpotter about damage calculations, STR is used as the primary modifier for physical melee damage, and AGI is used in the calculation of physical ranged damage. Basically Crocea Mors is affected by STR and Tranquility is affected by AGI. That doesn't mean that AGI is inherently bad, but it does mean that it isn't the end-all be-all of stats. I've tried to make all the stats fair and balanced across the board so that no one strategy is superior. A strong melee build is just as viable as an agile ranged build, or a wise magic build. Everything has a method of becoming strong enough to overcome any threat, if played right. It's Perks where Stats really shine. Luck, though, I need to work on the way Critical Hits work, so thank you for the reminder.**

 **That about does it for reviews for this week, man, that was a lot. Turns out writing a Book One epilogue will get you a lot of responses. Glad you all stopped by, and I really appreciate that you've all stuck around for as long as you have, no matter how long that may be.**

 **I have a Pa Treon where you can support me and my writing, and get a number of little perks along the way, including access to the full spreadsheet where everything is stored, past, present and future. At least, Systema-wise. Not like, the secret to the universe or anything, unless I've suddenly gotten way smarter than I thought.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**

* * *

 **[STATS]**

 **[Name: Jaune Arc]**

 **[Title Slot 1: Huntsman Professional** **]**

 **[Title Slot 2: Soul Tamer Expert]**

 **[Level: 45]**

 **[XP: 113,595/1,093,500]**

 **[HP: 785/785 (2.6/s)]**

 **[SP: 1570/1570 (10.4/s)]**

 **[MP: 2080/2080 (20.8/s)]**

 **[AP: 4160/4160 (1.04/s)]**

 **[STR: 53]**

 **[END: 52]**

 **[AGI: 31]**

 **[INT: 52]**

 **[WIS: 52]**

 **[CHA: 36]**

 **[LCK: 28]**

 **[Stat Points: 40]**

 **[Lien: 105,854L]**

 _More Detailed Stats at: tinyurl dot com / SystemaStats_


	58. Dining Discussions

**Yay, we get to address what I ranted about last chapter! It won't stop me from practically writing essays in response, don't worry :P**

 **Thanks to Justas Kondrusevicius, Fittzym and Maxstroid for supporting me this month! I really appreciate it!**

* * *

It had been some time since Jaune had simply trained.

No spells, no complicated skills, no over-leveled Grimm and no world-ending stakes. Just him, his sword, and his newest victim of arboreal assassination, a nearby tree, old and toughened from years of taking beatings from the people who lived nearby. He was pretty sure that the fist marks that changed in size were indicative of Yang's years of training her hand-to-hand.

He needed to do something to keep his body active as his mind processed a lot of what had happened.

Namely, the topic of conversation over dinner.

* * *

"Where do I even begin? I'd had a whole thing prepared, but that kind of seems useless, now."

Tai paced back and forth by the table, before resting his hands on the counter behind him, leaning against it.

"Ruby, I know I've told you that you have the same eyes as your mother."

Ruby nodded, her focus completely on her father. "I figured you just meant that they were a rare color."

"It's a little more than that. The Silver Eyes, they're a legend, a myth. Something I remember Ozpin telling me once was that all myths, all legends, they're all based in truth at least somewhat."

Qrow snorted over the top of his flask. "One of the many pearls of wisdom he had."

Tai nodded. "Amongst other things, Ozpin kept his cards very close to his chest. So, when we were in our third year, he took Summer aside, and explained as much as he deemed necessary to her. Namely, what they did."

"Which is?" Ruby asked, starting to get a little impatient.

"Magic."

The reaction was not what Tai was expecting.

"Magic? Really? Cool. That doesn't really explain what they do though."

Tai frowned. "I kind of figured that might be a little bit more world-shattering."

Qrow laughed. "Nah, Arc's got the System."

Tai's eyes widened as they shifted to Jaune, before shifting back to Qrow. "You didn't think to mention that to me?"

"Nah, I was waiting to see how long it'd take for you to figure it out."

Jaune ignored Qrow, as Tai glared at the drunkard. "I didn't really want to broadcast it to every person on Remnant. I'm still not entirely sure I want to be sharing it with everyone."

Tai nodded. "Good call. I assume Ozpin cleared him, right Qrow?"

Qrow shrugged. "As best I can tell. Seemed clean, though."

"What? Clean? What do you mean?" Jaune asked, head flicking between the two men.

Tai shook his head. "Let me finish before we start pelting me with questions, yeah?"

Jaune leaned back in his chair with a nod.

"Right. Where was I? Oh, yeah, magic."

There was a moment of silence as Tai collected his thoughts. "When Summer told me, I thought she was messing with me. When she turned a pack of Beowolves to stone the next week, I was a little more inclined to believe her."

Qrow let out another laugh. "Tai came bursting into the dorm, sweat dripping down his face, yammering on about how Summer was a witch. It was pretty funny."

Tai glared at Qrow again. "I didn't exactly take it the best in the beginning, I'll admit. Not like the rest of STRQ were all that much better."

Qrow shrugged. "Didn't really change all that much, to be honest. Summer was always the best fighter STRQ had. All it really did was make her more powerful, once she figured out how to use it."

"So, it works on Grimm? What about people? Like how I turned Jaune to stone?" Ruby asked.

Tai and Qrow shared a look. "That, well, it doesn't just work on Grimm. But, it doesn't work on your average fighter," Qrow answered, taking over. "It works on anyone with magic in their blood, too. If it's dormant, it'll slow 'em down a little. If it's active, though…"

Tai nodded. "If it's active magic, it'll work pretty well. Not as well as on Grimm, but still enough to petrify someone. The more magic they have, the more effective the Silver Eyes will be."

"Dormant?" Jaune asked, seeking clarification.

"Yeah, that… that's a whole other thing," Qrow said, taking a swig. "Tai, you remember the speech Oz gave?"

Tai shrugged. "I'll keep it short, unlike Oz. Magic once existed, was prolific. Then, for some reason, it was wiped out, and the only dormant magic was in incredibly rare individuals, for a variety of reasons. Most of those reasons were because of Ozpin, actually."

Jaune shared a glance with Ruby, before turning back. "So you're saying that magic is rare, and even then it's dormant. How does it become active?"

Tai let out a sigh. "More magic. This stuff isn't exactly a science, you know? I don't have a clue how it works."

Qrow took over. "I've only really got a minimal understanding of it, because I have some active magic."

That had Ruby and Yang's attention. "What?!"

Qrow shrugged. "I can turn into a bird. Something to do with the Branwen blood."

Jaune's brow furrowed in thought. "So, magic is hereditary and dormant unless activated by more magic. Who unlocked yours?"

Qrow finished his flask, frowning as he tilted it and nothing exited the top. "Oz. Fourth year, he activated the 'latent magical potential' he called it. Both me and Rae."

Jaune could hear Yang's sharp intake of breath from where he was sitting.

"So she can turn into a bird too?" She asked. Qrow nodded.

"You said Branwen blood. Meaning I've got dormant magic running through me?" Yang was standing, now.

Qrow shrugged. "Maybe. Dunno. Unless the other blondie can figure out how to pour that much magical potential into you to awaken it, we won't know for sure."

"And if she doesn't?" Jaune asked.

"Why are you asking me? I don't know, you'll liquefy her insides?"

That was a mental image that Jaune pushed as far out of his mind as he could as quickly as possible.

"What about my eyes? How did they activate?" Ruby asked, as Ren placed a comforting hand on Yang's shoulder, gently pushing her back into her seat.

"As far as I'm aware, they've always been awake," Tai replied. "You've just never needed them until now."

Jaune shook his head. "That can't be right. I _Observed_ Ruby a while ago, and she didn't have any Mana."

"You what?!" Tai thundered, before a sharp glare from Ruby had him back down. "Sorry. Old habits die hard."

Jaune clarified. "It's an information-gathering skill I have, one of the first ones I got, actually. It shows me HP, MP, SP and AP."

"Which are?"

"Health, Mana, Stamina and Aura. It shows them in numerical values, so I can see exactly how close someone is to running out of breath or Aura, or how close someone is to dying, if the situation came up."

"Is Mana the same as magic?" Tai asked.

Jaune went to answer, only to pause. "I… think? I don't really have anything to base it off."

"Hit me with it, kid. See if I've got any Mana. I should, I'm running hot," Qrow said, turning to face Jaune.

Jaune did as he was asked, _Observing_ Qrow in full detail.

 **[Qrow Branwen]**

 **[Bad Luck Charm; Level 72]**

 **[HP: 490/490]**

 **[SP: 490/490]**

 **[MP: 540/540]**

 **[AP: 980/980]**

Jaune read it aloud, confusion gracing his face. "So Mana is magic, essentially. Why did Ruby show up as not having any if hers was active?"

Tai frowned. "Perhaps they were dormant, then. Neither Summer nor Ozpin ever activated them, but you were able to use them."

"Maybe they activated themselves due to stress?" Jaune offered. "It's plausible, at least. My magic activated itself. I think, at least, but I think I'd remember."

"Way to inspire confidence, kid."

"Jaune, observe me, tell me if I have Mana!" Ruby asked, taking his hand in hers.

Jaune was quick to oblige.

 **[Ruby Rose]**

 **[Level 35]**

 **[HP: 200/200]**

 **[SP: 200/200]**

 **[MP: 210/210]**

 **[AP: 400/400]**

"That raises about as many questions as it answers, to be honest," Jaune muttered, as Ruby cheered.

"C'mon, Rubes, we get it, you're as special as everyone else I stumble across."

Qrow's statement made Ruby pout at her uncle, but her enthusiasm refused to be dampened.

"So, how do I use my eyes?" She asked her father.

Tai let out another sigh. "No idea."

That was what dampened her enthusiasm. "What? You don't know?"

Tai sat back down in his seat from earlier. "As far as I know, the only person I ever heard of who had the Silver Eyes was Summer. Unfortunately, Summer went on that mission…"

The man trailed off as a saddening silence fell over the assembled group.

"So we just have to figure it out ourselves. Doesn't sound too difficult, you've already used them once before."

Jaune's words perked Ruby's head back up in his direction, a small smile on her face.

"Yeah. Did anyone teach Mom?" Ruby asked.

Tai shook his head. "Not that I know of. All I know is that Ozpin explained what they were to her. She figured them out on her own."

Ruby's prior enthusiasm was back in full force. "If Mom could do it alone, then I can definitely do it! She didn't have someone like Jaune helping her, and between the two of us, we can figure out all sorts of magic!"

"So, that's your plan?"

Qrow's words left his lips and brought forth a surprised glance from both nieces.

"That woman is still out there. Other blondie's teammates are out there. I'm headed to Mistral soon. You all need to figure out what your next step is."

The man stood from his seat and stepped out of the room, leaving it as he'd found it.

In surprised silence.

* * *

Crocea Mors dug into the wood, sending splinters and sawdust off into the grass.

Qrow had been right. He needed to figure out his next steps.

Pyrrha was somewhere in Mistral, presumably still comatose. Weiss was in Atlas, probably under her father's thumb like she had been before he'd met her, which didn't bode well either.

And Blake, well, Jaune didn't even know where Blake was. He had a few guesses, but he didn't exactly have the wherewithal to simply go on a wild cat chase across Remnant on a hunch.

That wasn't even including what Ren, Nora, Yang and Ruby wanted to do. Yang was down an arm, Ruby had a whole new power to try and figure out with his help, and Jaune wasn't even sure how Ren and Nora were feeling about all this, he hadn't had the time to chat with them, he'd been a little busy.

It was all so much. He missed the simplicity of Beacon already. Class, train, class, train, repeat ad infinitum until he graduated. That would have been so much simpler.

Cinder had put a stop to that. Her reasons were somewhat unknown, but Jaune had a feeling that Qrow knew more than he was letting on.

What to do, what to do, what to do! He was going to be wrestling with this question for hours at the least.

What he would give to not have to make decisions like these. Decisions where the potential fate of the world was decided were not exactly his forte. His forte was more in coming up with effective-yet-flawed plans in the heat of battle that barely worked.

"Hey, Jaune."

He recognized Ruby's voice within an instant, sheathing Crocea Mors and turning to face her.

It was difficult to meet her eyes, now, because she refused to meet his. "What's wrong, Ruby?"

"I…" She began, pausing to shuffle her feet in the grass, the evening breeze bringing a chill to her skin. "We were talking as a team. We've kind of come to a decision."

Jaune had never been more thankful to have a decision taken from him. "What'd you guys decide?"

"Yang's still injured. She says she's fine, but we all know she can't fight at full strength, even when she's fully recovered. She's staying here, for now."

Jaune nodded. "And the rest of you?"

"I'm going with Ren and Nora to Mistral, with Uncle Qrow."

Jaune noticed a significant lack of himself in that statement. "Are you asking me if I want to come?"

Ruby took a deep breath before shaking her head. "No."

Jaune quirked his head to the side.

"I don't mean it as an insult, or anything, it's just-"

Jaune interrupted her by taking her hands, urging her eyes to meet his. "Ruby, just tell me. I promise I won't be angry."

Ruby swallowed, straightening her back. "As a fellow team leader, I think your team needs you."

It was where his mind had been wandering, too, if he was being honest. Leaving his team to the mercy of Remnant while he went off with RRYN seemed almost distasteful, and he was glad to see Ruby agreed.

"You know, if you hadn't told me now I'd still be wrestling with the decision for a long while."

Ruby nodded, wrapping her arms around his chest in a tight hug, head tilted up at him. "Go find Blake, rescue Weiss, and come meet us in Mistral. By the time you make it to us we'll have found Pyrrha, and if she isn't already awake you can use some of that fancy magic to make her better."

The mention of magic brought another issue to the forefront of his mind. "Who's going to help you with your eyes?"

Ruby shrugged, releasing Jaune. "If Mom could do it on her own, I can too. Besides, Uncle Qrow has magic. Maybe that's all I need."

Jaune smiled. "I have complete faith that you'll be able to turn me to stone at will when I get to Mistral, don't worry."

Ruby punched him in the chest, barely fazing him. "Meanie. You know that was an accident."

Jaune laughed. "It's fine, Ruby, I got better."

Ruby's smile turned slightly sadder. "Maybe, while you're in Atlas, you can give Penny's Soul to her father."

Jaune took a seat on the grass, leaning back against the tree, and he urged Ruby to do the same, wrapping his arms around her as she sat in front of him. "You can't feel guilty about that, Ruby. You did what you had to, what was necessary. It was the only option, and you saved my life. You saved a lot of lives. I promise, I'll do what I can to bring Penny back."

Ruby closed her eyes, leaning back into Jaune's chest. "I just wish I could have done more."

Jaune nodded in agreement. "I do too."

* * *

The first snow of winter was beginning to fall, powdered white starting to cover the landscape of Patch in clumps of cold, wet slush.

It would never be cold enough to completely cover the island, of course, nor would it be cold enough to bother Jaune, thanks to his Bearskin perk, but it would be cold enough for many of the houses to have smoke belching out of the chimneys atop them, the small town at the center of Patch, located adjacent to Signal, almost bustling with people.

Year after year Patch underwent much the same weather without much change, and this had brought with it a series of habits that were upheld.

What that actually meant was that the well-trodden paths that swerved through the town were always kept clear of slush, locals making sure to keep it passable.

Jaune walked down one of these paths, his coat sitting in his inventory to prevent the coattails dragging across the somewhat moistened ground. He didn't mind his boots getting muddy, that was what they were for, but there was something to be said about dragging mud behind you on clothes that he just did not want to deal with.

The first time he'd come into town it had been snowing, and he'd gotten a few strange looks. He understood why, it wasn't often someone walked out in the snow with the only item of upper clothing being a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow.

The next few times he'd gotten far less attention, though there had been one girl who continuously stared at him when she thought he wasn't aware. That had made him chuckle somewhat to himself.

Before the System he'd have never gotten that kind of attention.

It also turned out that the girl was a friend of Ruby's, and when she saw the red-cloaked girl approach him and wrap him in a tight hug, she immediately pouted, before grabbing Ruby's attention.

It was why he was walking alone at present. He still had a few things he had to pick up in Patch in preparation for his own trip, as did Ruby, which was why she was out here with him, but she had the luxury of having Ren and Nora to help her shop. Yang, too, despite the fact that Yang was still going to be staying with her father.

"Morning Hunter. What can I get you?"

The owner of the General Store in Patch was at the counter, a genial smile on his face. He was older than most of the town, easily in his sixties, and he'd made quite a living from being the only store on Patch. Not that anyone complained, Patch was already pretty small, it didn't have the luxury of competition.

"Depends on what you've got in stock, I guess. Don't want to accidentally deprive the town of something if I can help it," Jaune answered with a laugh. "Though you do look like you've got a good selection of drinks back there."

The owner let out a laugh of his own. "Normally I'd say you look a little young to be buying something like that, but you've stuck around to help out after the rest of your lot headed back to Vale. That, and you aren't one of the brats that normally wander in and try to convince me it was their birthday just the other day."

Jaune quirked an eyebrow. "This is a pretty small town. Would that even work?"

"Gods, no. Not that it'd occur to them that their parents probably tried the same thing on me when I first opened this place."

Jaune couldn't help but chuckle at that as he walked over to one of the shelves. "I'm mostly looking for travel supplies, to be honest. I've got some work to do abroad."

The man nodded at that. "Be a right shame to see you go, but everyone's got something they've gotta do. Rations are on the far left, I've got plenty of those. Not exactly ever run out of stock on those things, even with the recent incident. Careful, though, some of those might be from before you were born."

Jaune shrugged. "What doesn't kill you…"

"Gives you severe intestinal pains, don't worry, I'm all too familiar."

Jaune took roughly two weeks worth of rations, placing them on the counter. "These, and a couple bottles of your strongest stuff, if that's alright."

"Strongest stuff, huh? You gonna drink it, or poison someone with it?" The man asked, with a sly chuckle. "I'd be careful with this stuff, it's Vacuon Tequila. This stuff'll knock out an Ursa."

Jaune smirked. "I'll be sure to test that claim."

"That'll be 500 Lien total."

Jaune frowned. "I thought it was more."

The man shrugged. "What can I say, kid, I like you. You've got spunk. Take the deal."

Jaune did as he was instructed, handing the purple Lien card over and taking the stuff, carefully balancing the three bottles atop the rations. "Thanks for the help."

The man waved him out of the shop. "No worries, kid. Good luck out there."

Jaune was quick to stow his newly acquired goods in his inventory, after making sure that no one was glaring at him, and he turned, headed further towards the center of town.

Ruby and her friend had rushed ahead, planning on grabbing something to eat and catching up, and they'd left Jaune to shop, and whilst he had his new items, he still wasn't finished. He had a few things planned, and he wasn't anywhere near skilled enough to make what he had in mind.

He'd done some asking around, and it was Tai who'd informed him that Signal had a tiny laboratory for experimentation in their forge, and whilst, according to Ruby, it wasn't anything special, it would do for what he had to do.

That wasn't what he wasn't skilled enough for, though. No, that had the honor of being second on his newly updated to-do-list.

First was visiting Patch's blacksmith.

The building was a little bit squatter than the rest, made of stronger, more dense bricks and toughened logs supporting a shingled roof, multiple chimneys sprouting from the top, and the smell of metal and smoke wafted from the front door. He could hear the clanging of a hammer from the front, and he pushed the door open, stepping into the warm interior.

Outside it was cold, that was for sure, and despite his resistance to all but the most extreme cold, it didn't mean it was entirely comfortable. It just meant it didn't bother him.

Stepping inside was like stepping into a sauna after a dip in an ice bath. It was satisfying and yet almost uncomfortably warm, and Jaune found himself adjusting his collar, loosening it.

"Aye, can I help ye?" The voice was loud, loud enough to carry over the sound of machinery, and Jaune couldn't help but let out a slight smile as the man that stepped through the door from the workshop matched every single stereotype Jaune could think of.

"Ye gonna stand there and look daft or ye gonna tell me what ye want?"

"Do you know anything about leatherworking?" Jaune asked.

The blacksmith shrugged. "Sure. I'm better with metal, o'course, but I can do leather if it needs doin'. Why?"

"I need a saddle made."

The man quirked a bushy black eyebrow, wiping sweat and soot off of his face. "What do ye need a saddle for? Ain't any horses on Patch."

Jaune shook his head. "It's a Semblance thing. Did you watch the Vytal Tournament?"

The man let out a hearty guffaw, placing his hammer down on the counter. "I knew I recognized ye from somewhere. Ye got all those beasties under yer control, right?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah. A few of them can fly, but it's pretty hard to ride them without something like a saddle."

The blacksmith nearly made Jaune laugh aloud as he nodded, pulling out a set of half-moon spectacles and balancing them precariously on his large nose that looked as if it had been broken at least twenty times, peering down at a ledger on the counter. "I've got some supplies, sure. I'd have to measure 'em, though."

"Shouldn't be a problem. They're tame, so they won't attack or anything. Can the measuring wait until this afternoon?"

The blacksmith shrugged, putting the glasses away. "Sure. Come get me whenever ye ready, boy."

Jaune quickly thanked him and stepped back out into the cold, still somewhat unnerved by the fact that he could feel the cold, but he wasn't feeling cold. It was just like wearing a blanket of chill air.

Number two on his checklist could wait, though. He'd just spotted Ruby.

* * *

Classes were still on in Signal, and Jaune couldn't help but laugh as Ruby lead him through the corridors, dodging a horde of small first-year students that barely came up to his chest. Even Ruby was taller than them, which she seemed to relish.

"It's weird, you know? I never went to a Combat School, so seeing this place… I doubt I'd have ever made it through a place like this."

Ruby looked back to Jaune. "You'd have done fine, Jaune, don't be so hard on yourself."

Jaune shook his head. "I only made it into Beacon cause of the System. Without it, I'd probably have died in Initiation."

Ruby tried to counter his point, but he interrupted before she could speak. "It doesn't matter either way. I'm here, everything's already happened. Can't change the past."

That, Ruby accepted. He wasn't feeling self-pity, it was more like he just realized how outclassed he'd been. His decision to try and get into Beacon before he'd gotten the System just seemed like even more of a stupid idea as every day passed him by. He'd been foolish.

Now, though, he could try to fix his mistakes.

"It was nice to catch up with Astra, though," Ruby said. "Though she kept staring at you. Kinda weird."

Jaune quirked an eyebrow at his girlfriend. "Pretty sure she was checking me out, Ruby."

It was strange not being the densest person in any given room.

Ruby made an 'oh' sound, realizing what had happened. "So it was like super-awkward when she realized I was dating you?"

"Pretty sure that didn't stop her, to be honest," Jaune said with a laugh as Ruby opened one of the doors, ushering him through.

"Yang and Astra always did get along pretty well," Ruby admitted. "How am I still this oblivious?"

Jaune shrugged. "I mean, it took literal divine intervention to help me out. At least you're not as bad as I ever was."

Jaune made his way to the nearest lab setup, opening his inventory, as Ruby stepped next to him. "Divine intervention?"

"Has to be something like that, right? I mean, you don't get a semblance without Aura, except I did. So, it can't be normal. Plus it gives me magic, so we figured it was some kind of powerful magic."

Ruby nodded along with his words.

"I… when I was petrified, I had a kind of dream. It was weird, and difficult to explain."

Jaune placed one of the bottles of tequila on the table, much to Ruby's surprise. "No, Jaune, you don't need to drink to help you remember. Pretty sure that the opposite happens."

Jaune rolled his eyes, before continuing on. "I was in this room, except it wasn't really a room. It was like this endless expanse of white. A voice spoke to me, a few did. They told me they were the previous wielders of the System."

Ruby's eyes widened. "Did they tell you anything else?"

"Only that they all had different gifts given to them by the System, and that the System was the power of the Gods."

Ruby put a finger to her chin in thought. "Huh. I don't know what that means."

Jaune shrugged. "Neither, really. I've been thinking about it, but I don't really have a great way of checking if I'm right or not, so even if I was, I wouldn't know."

"Putting that aside, why do you have a bunch of alcohol?"

That was a question that Jaune did in fact have an answer to. "Alchemy."

Ruby's deadpan glare was enough to make him continue explaining. "All the alchemy I can do requires an item called Alchemic Reagent. I can make Alchemic Reagent with alcohol and Inert Dust."

"How much alcohol, exactly?" Ruby asked, eyeing the three bottles.

Jaune shrugged. "No idea. I've never made it before."

"So you're doing chemistry without knowing anything about what your mixing?"

Jaune shrugged a second time. "I know what it's going to make, if that makes any difference."

Ruby took a step backwards.

"Ruby, it isn't going to explode. I think."

"You aren't really inspiring confidence."

"Only one way to find out," Jaune retorted, taking a handful of Inert Dust out of his inventory and placing them next to the bottles of Vacuon tequila, as Ruby eyed them warily.

His brain went on automatic as his hands followed the mental instructions, first pouring roughly an eighth of one of the bottles into a beaker, followed up by sticking an Inert Dust crystal into it and placing the beaker above the burner, as Ruby took another step backwards.

It only took a few seconds before the liquid and the Inert Dust mixed together, and Jaune quickly took the beaker off its stand, pouring the powder out onto a piece of filter paper.

Ruby stepped back closer to look at the Alchemic Reagent as Jaune placed his hand over it, closing his eyes.

A single moment passed and a brief flash of light escaped from underneath his hand, and when he revealed it once more it was a single orb, sparkling in the light.

"That was strange."

Ruby's words snapped Jaune back to reality as he realised he was finished. "Yeah."

He peered at the orb, picking it up and rolling it between a finger and thumb, noting that it was completely spherical. "No imperfections…"

"What can you do with it?" Ruby asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Well, I can make a bunch of potions, and other alchemy thingies."

"Alchemy thingies doesn't exactly sound technical."

"Yeah, I know. The reason I made it was so I could try and make this…" Jaune turned, reaching into his inventory once more and pulling out five Beowolf Claws, dropping them into the beaker and once again placing it above the burner, dropping the Alchemic Reagent in with them.

Ruby hadn't backed away this time, and she watched alongside Jaune as the claws melted down into a blackened sludge, the orb disappearing into it.

The sludge bubbled under the heat, but Jaune could see it shrinking down, leaving only a trace as it slowly hardened around the Alchemic Reagent.

Then, after a few seconds, it was completely solid, leaving only a crystalline structure inside the beaker. Jaune quickly tipped it out into his hand and observed it.

 **[Nigredo]**

 **[A black crystalline compound used in a variety of applications.]**

Jaune knew of one application, that was for sure. One of his latest skills, _Beastial Bound Evolution_. The only thing was he didn't know if he wanted to use it on all his summons. He knew there was a quest that would get him _Sentient Bound Evolution_ , and for some reason he knew that if he used one skill he wouldn't be able to use the other.

"Decisions, decisions. It's always tough decisions with me."

Ruby looked at Jaune as if he'd gone insane. "Jaune, you're muttering to yourself again. You kinda look like Weiss at the beginning of the year, actually."

Jaune quickly explained, and Ruby looked just as indecisive, but as opposed to the blond she at least had an idea. "Why not just pick one Summon that you're guaranteed to want to be Beastial, and go from there?"

That was something Jaune could do. "I'm going to make a few more of these things first, use up all the alcohol. Might as well."

It didn't take all that much time, and Jaune had twenty-three more Alchemic Reagents. Vacuon tequila was strong, apparently. He'd also gone from _Crafting_ Level 10 to Level 11, which was nice.

There were unfortunately no new unlocked recipes that came with that level, but that was fine. He hadn't expected any.

"So, back home?" Ruby asked, as Jaune quickly finished cleaning up, placing the freshly rinsed beaker back on its stand and double-checking the burner was turned off.

"Sounds like a plan."

* * *

"No, Cadejo, down boy. No, Zwei! Get off the table!"

Jaune and Ruby shared a glance as Yang picked up the corgi in one hand and placed him on the ground, already having to push Cadejo back as he tried to get the food on the table.

"Having some trouble, Yang?" Jaune asked, an amused expression on his face.

"Oh thank the Gods, can you get Cadejo to stop trying to eat our lunch? I can handle Zwei but two is a bit much."

Jaune clicked his fingers and Cadejo quickly padded over, Ruby kneeling to scratch behind his ears.

"You weren't going to eat our lunch, were you Cadejo?" She asked, holding the wolf's head up to hers.

Cadejo panted.

"Ugh, dog breath."

Jaune laughed. "To be fair, you had that coming."

Jaune stepped aside and summoned Shirdal, watching as the griffon congealed into a solid form, letting out a low caw.

He reached into his inventory and withdrew the Nigredo, holding it in one hand as the other came to rest on Shirdal's head.

He could feel the latent power flowing through one arm and into the other, channelling through into Shirdal as _Beastial Bound Evolution_ activated.

He could see Shirdal growing even bigger, the bone plates growing denser, the foreclaws becoming sharper.

Shirdal chirped, and it sent a reverberation down Jaune's spine as the Nigredo shattered and faded, becoming ashes in his hands.

He could tell both Ruby and Yang were looking in his direction, but it was Nora that surprised him the most.

"What is that?!" She shouted as Jaune released his connection, the newly improved Shirdal taking a step back and giving his wings a tentative stretch.

"That'd be my first Beastial Bound Soul," Jaune answered, as Nora admired Shirdal.

"I must say, it is quite impressive. And large."

Jaune could always rely on Ren to get his point across in the required amount of words.

"Large? It's the size of a building!" Yang exclaimed.

Jaune shrugged. "Large is relative anyway."

Nora whipped her head around. "Can I ride him?"

Nora had read his mind. "I'm actually going to get a saddle made. Patch's blacksmith is coming up to do some measurements this afternoon."

Jaune took a seat at the table that had been moved outside, grabbing some food. "Hopefully all goes to plan and Shirdal doesn't eat him."

Nora was too busy admiring Shirdal to join in on the three stares that were aimed his way.

"I'm kidding."

His rapidly raised placating hands seemed to dismiss their concerns, and Nora, at the sight of food, was quick to place herself in a seat, somehow already halfway through her plate of assorted foodstuffs.

He never ceased to be impressed by Nora's capabilities when it came to sustenance consumption.

They fell into conversation, as they often had times past, but Jaune still found himself looking over his shoulder occasionally, seeking a teammates input.

It was so easy to forget that they weren't there. That they were missing, they were injured, they were taken.

He felt his hand clench into a fist, and he suppressed a sigh.

At least he knew what he had to do.

* * *

 **Hey, look, no rant this time! Also, as an addendum to my statements about the Silver Eyes in both my previous AN and this chapter, I was looking back through the RWBY Wiki and just quickly checking up on a few facts when I stumbled across a little pearl of knowledge. Apparently Salem has a small line about how the Maiden Powers are affected by the Silver Eyes, so that's even more justification for how I decided the eyes would work. Adding to that the dormant magic concept I'm playing around with, things are starting to get pretty interesting.**

 **Also somehow I'm halfway through writing chapter 60. Don't ask, I think I wrote nearly sixteen thousand words in two days. So anything you guys say or suggest may not come into play until a few chapters from now unless I want to go back and change some stuff. They still need to be edited, of course, but I tend to do that on the day of upload.**

 **I'll stop blabbering on now and get right into reviews!**

 **F14M3RZ: Hopefully this chapter addressed some of your stated concerns. Balance is, as always, one of my top priorities, so I don't want to accidentally implement anything that might ruin that balance. It's why so many things are subject to change depending on how they sit with both myself and all my readers.**

 **Shadow of God: Don't get me wrong, when I say balanced stats I don't mean that a politician needs to have maxed strength or anything. What I mean is that it is feasible to 'play' the System with any proper build. It's hard to put into terms in a story-context, but many of the things I've been balancing have been purely from a 'gameplay' standpoint. It just isn't interesting to read about a character who uses one spell on literally anything they come across with a min-maxed build dedicated entirely to that. When I say story balance, I usually mean a blend between fair gameplay and good plot. I can understand why you would think Jaune's jack-of-all-trades mindset would be more of a hindrance than a help, but in the end it isn't about how fast Jaune can get to the end of the game and more about how interesting his journey is to get there. That's why I wanted balance to be such a big thing. So many fics, Gamer-fics especially, make Jaune out to be this unkillable badass, and whilst sometimes that can be interesting to read, it quickly becomes repetitive. Even the most popular fics stumble across this problem, and it's why Jaune isn't really suited to that sort of thing in a long-form story. He has been, and always is, in canon at least, the underdog. RWBY and JNPR are the underdogs. It's why so many people support them, why so many people enjoy reading, writing and watching them. Because struggles are inherently more interesting to read and write than victories. That doesn't mean there won't be victories, of course, but I don't want Systema to end in twenty chapters time with Jaune having reached max level and launching Salem into the sun, saving the world from the dastardly Grimm. I, uh, might've gone on another rant. Oops.**

 **typhonyx: Personally, I like Ozpin as a pseudo-villain. And, at least canon-wise, why wouldn't he be set up that way? It's sympathetic in a way, and I can understand the reactions he got from the main cast, canon Jaune especially. He's a good character with motivations that seem contradictory, but all blend together after a time that it really is convincing that he's made so many mistakes. Of course, in Systema, there are a few more things at play, a few changes that have serious consequences plot-wise, and Ozpin just so happens to be at the forefront of a few of those. We'll see more of him eventually, and he'll definitely have some explaining to do. The Apathy summon is actually being worked into something a little more special, but the basic idea is quite similar to what you're suggesting. I have a 'patient-zero' style for Apathy, but that's where I'll leave that.**

 **DuplicateUserName: I know you're joking, but the amount of people that have tried that and failed is a number higher than I would've hoped. Don't get me wrong, gender-swapped characters can be great, but if I have to suffer through another failed Jaune harem where it's all of RWBY, Pyrrha, Nora and a female Ren I will murder someone. No offense to anyone who may be writing something like that, it just isn't really for me, unless it's well-written.**

 **jedimasterb10: I still haven't watched Jojo yet. Every time I mean to I get sidetracked or distracted or I accidentally teach myself Python in order to write up the entire spreadsheet's Loot Drop system in a single GUI window. But hey, at least that's all organized now.**

 **razmire:** **Let's just say I'm working on something new that I originally said I wasn't going to do. Hush hush, but I'm implementing... dungeons. The world may scream in terror at the mere word, but I have a plan. As for how that relates to Yang's arm, well, I'll leave that up in the air for now.**

 **armentho: I'd say give my response to Shadow of God a read, so I don't accidentally rant a second time, but I should point out that stats aren't the end-all be-all. If I was to take HP so seriously I'd end up trapping myself. It's less of a resilience thing and more a measure of toughness, in a similar vein to how Dungeons & Dragons treats HP. The character isn't physically harder to kill, they just keep fighting for longer, through worse injuries. It's fantasy, and whilst I do like to implement reality every so often, it'll start to seriously hinder the creative flow if I end up doing that sort of thing. You aren't wrong with the fight smarter not harder point, though, and that is the plan. Cinder's high level will be explained at a later point, and I have a good reason for that, but you can expect many of the fights to hopefully play out with far more planning and choreography. It won't be a fight in which whoever has the higher number wins. As for the public spreadsheet, it does have it, it's in column B. For the sake of calculations I have the regen and the amount split into two cells. Directly left. As for cross-posting I'm working on re-editing all the chapters to more suit the sites, as there is no linebreak function that I can find, which means I have to go through nearly sixty chapters of stuff and edit them to fit better.**

 **tjbruiser99: Can confirm, Jaune will revisit Mountain Glenn. Potentially a few times, if certain things happen. However, with the way my Loot Tables work, there is only a chance for the item to be like that. It's all dependent on the RNG of the tables. There are plenty of items listed on there, though, my python script has like 400 lines of code, which isn't all that much in the grand scheme of things, but that's 400 lines of code for one boss.**

 **Guest: Agility and Luck affecting Critical Hits... brilliant idea. I won't have it so significantly complicated as to consider so many variables, but I will test a few formulas to see what fits best. Thanks for the idea!**

 **Guest: Talking about consequences, don't worry. I'm addressing that soon. Having written a few chapters in advance it's quite difficult not to give spoilers on what does and doesn't happen.**

 **Drakon hunter: To be fair, Ruby's forge is in the Arcave at the moment. All her stuff was moved when Qrow arrived.**

 **Nagisa Tr: I know the feeling all to well. At least I have a schedule that I've near-perfectly stuck to for over a year, and there's no sign I'll be stopping anytime soon.**

 **Glasses Writer: Soon tm.**

 **That'll be it for reviews this week, that was a long one, whew. I have a Pat reon if you want to support me, I'd really appreciate it!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	59. Anonymity Breeds Fearlessness

**More computer troubles this week, oh joy. Running a fresh install of Windows, and have had to put my entire PC on its side just to prevent the GPU from slipping out of the slot. Apologies for the chapter being a day late or so, at least on my end.**

 **Thanks to Fittzym, Maxstroid and Justas Kondrusevicius for supporting me this month, I really appreciate it!**

* * *

Jaune had never liked goodbyes.

He'd said plenty in his life. Sometimes it was the simple farewell, his mother, father or even one of his sisters headed out.

Sometimes it was somewhat more tearful. His grandfather's funeral, the sad kind. His sister's wedding, earlier in the year. He barely remembered it, now, his mind awash with plenty of other things, but that had been a farewell of happy tears, mostly from his mother.

Other times the farewell was so much more complicated.

He'd never felt so torn before, torn between his care for his team and his care for RRYN, in particular Ruby.

He didn't want to leave. He didn't want to say goodbye. But, despite all that, he knew he had to. They had two separate paths to take, and Jaune's would take him far away.

His final destination was Mistral, as was Ruby's, but their journeys would lead them different ways.

He couldn't help it, wrapping both Ren and Nora in a hug as Yang hugged her sister, only for the two blonds to swap, Yang saying goodbye to the rest of her teammates as Jaune wrapped his arms around his girlfriend, who returned the gesture tearily.

"I'll meet you guys in Mistral as soon as I can, I promise," Jaune nearly whispered, not trusting his voice to say any more.

"I know. I love you, Jaune."

Suddenly he knew, trust or not, he needed to use his voice once more. "I love you too, Ruby."

Simple words with such a depth of meaning behind them. He knew exactly how much it meant to Ruby to say them, and he knew she knew how much they meant to him, too.

Letting go was one of the hardest things he'd ever had to do, but he managed it, watching as the red-cloaked girl joined her teammates, the three following their uncle off into the distance.

Yang placed a hand on his shoulder. "I know."

What Yang knew was unspoken, yet it somehow still spoke volumes. He knew that she was feeling what he'd been feeling.

"You'll catch up with them before I will, Yang. You always were stronger."

Yang accepted it without comment, just a sad smile.

"For what it's worth, Jaune, I think Ruby made an excellent choice."

Jaune turned his head to look towards Tai, leaning against the wall of the house. "Both of you will catch up, of that I have no doubt."

"I've got to pick up the saddle for Shirdal, but I won't be coming back. I guess this is goodbye from me, too," Jaune said, after a moment of silent contemplation.

Both Tai and Yang nodded. "Stay safe out there," they echoed, and Jaune couldn't help the small smile that fell over his face.

"I'll try."

* * *

Shirdal seemed to appreciate the saddle, which Jaune was thankful for. It didn't feature a number of more typical features of a saddle for a horse, considering the intelligence his summons displayed, and the fact that they accepted and understood his instructions.

He didn't exactly need reins when he could mentally communicate with his mount.

He gently ran one hand through the golden feathers that crested Shirdal's head, atop the neck, and urged the summon to begin, to which Shirdal did, bending slightly before springing into a run.

Jaune held tightly to the grips at the front of the saddle, things he'd specifically asked for. It allowed him to maintain his grip without worrying about getting tangled up in leather cord, and gave him more freedom of movement. Not that he'd actually tested that in flight. He was yet to fly.

That changed the moment Shirdal leaped, powerful golden wings spreading out as they gained height slowly, muscles rippling as they beat up and down in the repetitive motion that was flight.

Jaune was airborne. Jaune was flying.

Technically Jaune was riding Shirdal who was flying, but it was forgivable to simplify a little given the circumstances.

The horizon loomed in all directions at this altitude, above the treeline. It made him feel surprisingly small, and yet surprisingly free at the same time.

He ignored the confusion of his emotions and directed Shirdal in the direction of Vale. He could see the coastal docks of the city from here, and it was only a short flight to cover the distance. He just hoped that the city's anti-air defenses checked for Aura.

Ten minutes later Jaune found out that the anti-air defenses did not in fact check for Aura as one fired a shot that, thankfully, missed.

He was quick to dismiss Shirdal, though, immediately realising that the saddle disappeared alongside the Griffon, and he found himself plummeting through the air above the nearly repaired kingdom.

Which, amongst other things, meant he couldn't exactly use _Mana Impact_ to simply land. That'd, well, he might make a few enemies doing that. And potentially kill someone, something else he wasn't particularly keen on doing.

A risky idea struck him, and he shrugged mid-air, flipping until he was in position, and activated _Surface Walk_ and waited.

Sure, this was pretty reminiscent of an argument he'd had with Saphron a few years back, where you could survive a Bullhead crash by jumping out and running down a mountain, but back then he hadn't been able to do what he could now.

One foot touched the edge of a building in a surprising display of agility, followed by the other, and Jaune allowed the second part of his two-step plan to come into action, activating _Rolling Recovery_ to nullify the majority of the damage he would have taken.

The combined efforts of _Surface Walk_ and _Rolling Recovery_ seemed to trick the System into thinking he'd been launched sideways instead of downwards, which was strange enough, but as he came to a sliding stop, one foot planted against the actual ground and the other against the building, he let out a surprised laugh.

"I can't believe that actually worked," Jaune muttered, before a sudden pain lit his leg aflame.

"Right. Most of the damage," he grunted out as he dropped to the pavement, feeling the shattered limb already mostly healed.

"Note to self. Make sure that the two-step plan has a third step that involves Aura."

The damage he'd suffered wasn't all that severe, but it was the stares that really caught his attention. It appeared he'd caused quite a commotion.

"Sorry about that. Vale tried to shoot my ride down."

* * *

"Jaune?"

He didn't think he'd ever heard that voice call him that before. "Professor Goodwitch? I didn't expect to see you."

The woman appeared surprised to see him, which was somewhat odd. "What are you doing in Vale?"

Jaune frowned, turning back to look up at the ruins of Beacon. "Looking for clues."

She adjusted her glasses and took a step closer. "Qrow's already been through and performed as thorough as search as anyone else could."

Jaune shook his head. "Not that. Ruby, Ren and Nora are helping with that. I'm looking for Blake."

"I wasn't aware Blake was missing."

Another shake of his head followed suit. "Not missing, per se. Just… elusive, I guess."

"Might I ask why you're looking for her, then?" Goodwitch asked.

"She's the only member of AWBN that I don't know the location of. It makes her the priority. I don't know if she's safe or not."

"Well, she isn't at Beacon, if that's what you were wondering."

Jaune's laugh was devoid of humor. "I figured as much. Only thing in Beacon is corpses."

The harshness of his statement surprised even himself. "Sorry. Guess I'm still not over it."

Goodwitch shook her head. "That's to be expected. I'm still enraged myself. The council has seen fit to place me as Beacon's Headmistress in Ozpin's… absence. Lo and behold, that puts me in charge of the cleanup as well. Which would be going much smoother if that Wyvern wasn't bringing all the nearby Grimm in towards Vale."

Jaune was surprised. "Even Mountain Glenn?"

Goodwitch nodded. "Unfortunately. We have more than enough firepower here, thanks to a number of Valean Hunters who returned in the wake of the catastrophe, but that doesn't mean it isn't a chore."

Jaune accepted the decline of his unspoken offer to help as it was, instead choosing to focus on his original goal. "Do you have any idea where Blake might have gone?"

Goodwitch went silent for a moment, deep in thought. "Blake is skilled in a number of things. Her past has given her a talent for espionage, that much is for certain, and if she wants to stay hidden, I doubt anyone could find her. That being said, there are more than a few people in Vale who might know a thing or two about the comings and goings of people. Perhaps you should try and track one of them down?"

"Thanks for the help, Professor- er, Headmistress."

The woman simply nodded farewell, continuing down the well-worn path of the public park, a stack of paperwork levitating in her wake, encased in a purple glyph.

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[Information and Information Accessories]**

 **[** _ **Track down Junior's Club and ask the man in charge about Blake's whereabouts.**_ **]**

 **[Reward: Regular Experience Orb]**

Jaune almost laughed aloud. He'd forgotten how his semblance would sometimes answer questions before he even got to ask them. Plus that reward seemed interesting.

And, if his memory served him correctly, he knew where Junior's Club was located, at least, district-wise. It couldn't be all that difficult to find the building in question. Vale was big, but it wasn't that big.

So he set out, one foot in front of the other. He had a club to find.

* * *

Had Vale always been a confusing city without named streets? Or directions? Or had someone just decided to rearrange all the streets, and while they were at it, steal all the street-signs?

Jaune imagined it was the former rather than the latter, but the stolen signs theory did have some credence to it.

Junior's Club was unlabeled, but the nightlife in Vale had apparently not ceased in the wake of the Fall of Beacon.

At least, the criminal nightlife, from the look of some of the people in the line that ran nearly down the street.

Jaune wasn't going to stand in line, though. He was going to play into a little stereotype he'd have to play up a whole lot sooner or later.

It was time for Jaune to pretend to be ruthless.

First, though, he had to psyche himself up. He wasn't a ruthless person by nature, but if he was to get what he wanted here, he was going to have to play his role convincingly. He doubted Junior would be as kind as to simply give him the information he was seeking without recompense, but he would be more likely to fork it over when threatened with a worse alternative.

Of course, threatening the most prolific information broker in Vale was going to be a choice that would most likely have ramifications. Ramifications that, hopefully, he wouldn't have to deal with.

Unless they made their way to people who would go after his family.

That thought strayed through Jaune's mind like a bolt of lightning. He'd almost forgotten, in the haste of the passing time. He'd forgotten why he was hiding what he could do in the first place.

Okay, so Plan A was out of the question. He was publicly known, anyway, so he couldn't just say he wasn't who he was.

He needed a disguise.

' _Do I have anything on me that I can use…'_

The thought was answered as he opened his inventory, checking through the list of items.

Two things stood out most of all. ' _I still have my suit from the Dance, and… whatever the Abominae Mask is.'_

It didn't exactly sound appealing, but the fact that it was a mask lent significant weight to what was going to be a makeshift disguise.

Checking around to make sure that no one was watching, he quickly equipped the suit and withdrew the mask, holding it in his hand and _Observing_ it.

 **[Abominae Mask]**

 **[** _ **A swirling mass of darkness and hatred, the Abominae is a mask made of Grimm materials, and provides significant boosts to physical and mental prowess, at the cost of humanity. Infuse a Grimm Skull into the mask in order to gain a bonus.**_ **]**

 **[Current Skulls: None]**

He couldn't even remember when he'd gotten this thing, and the description didn't exactly give it a pleasant feeling, but it was this or nothing, really. Besides, he had _System Mind_ and _System Body_ , and they'd protect him from any negative effects. Or at least they'd heal him when he removed it afterwards.

First, though, he needed to put a Grimm Skull into it. Inventory still open, Jaune searched through his list of Grimm drops and withdrew a Beowolf skull, and nearly jumped as the mask startled him, black tendrils reaching out and wrapping around the skull, forming what looked a lot more like an actual mask than before.

It had the unfortunate side effect of making him look like he was with the White Fang, which wasn't great, but he hoped the suit would be enough to throw off anyone smart enough to make any kind of connection. At least it didn't look anything like the typical White Fang masks, those were simple steel faceplates.

Now came the most difficult part; working up the nerve to actually put it on.

"Worst comes to worst I just take it off and come back tomorrow night. It isn't a big deal Jaune."

He was talking to himself, a sure sign of his nervousness. He really didn't want to put this thing on.

He sighed, and placed the mask on his head, feeling the writhing mass of black still as he put it on.

It was cold. Nightmarishly cold, in fact, and where the eye sockets sat were covered in a black film that was nearly transparent, at least from the inside. The outside they were solid black shadows, as if there was nothing inside the skull. He wasn't aware that it made his eyes stand out as bright red orbs that glowed much like a Grimm, but that was just icing atop the proverbial cake.

A notification popped up the moment he placed it on, and when he looked at it, he could see creeping black thorny vines along the borders of the menu.

 **[Abominae Mask has been infused with a Beowolf Skull!]**

 **[+25% to Agility! +50% to Intimidation! +100% Corruption Gain!]**

Okay, the corruption thing wasn't great. Whatever that was, Jaune wasn't sure. He didn't have any meter on his player screen that said he was gaining corruption, though, so maybe it was something he gained from doing, well, corrupt things. He hoped he'd never find out, if he was being honest.

Quickly stowing Crocea Mors in his inventory and making sure that Tranquility was loaded, he approached with an amount of confidence he didn't feel, back straight, standing at his full height, which was a tad bit over six foot now, he noted, noticing his reflection in a window.

He also noticed the glowing red eyes, but now wasn't the time to be admiring, or fearing, his reflection.

The bouncers, two men in black suits and red ties, looked increasingly nervous as he approached, and they didn't even bother to stop him, allowing him to walk past unchallenged as he stepped into the building, the ever-increasing volume of pounding somewhat-popular EDM reaching his ears as he crossed the threshold.

He didn't recognize the song, unsurprisingly, and it didn't really matter if he did. His destination was the bar, and the bartender after that. He had some questions to ask.

He was getting stares, that much was certain, and there were certainly more bouncers inside the club than he'd expected, leading him to realise that they were less bouncers and more like gang members, especially with the plethora of weapons they carried. They were starting to surround him, but he made it to the bar unhindered.

"I'm looking for Junior."

His voice came out deeply distorted, sounding almost like a rasp with a thousand echoes, quiet yet inexplicably loud. It scared him, but he maintained his front. He was in control, not anyone or anything else.

"You found h-" Junior began, stalling somewhat as he came face to face with the mask. He recovered well, though. "Found him. Anything I can get you that'll get you to take that mask off? You're scaring my clientele."

"Information."

Junior placed the glass he'd been wiping down on the bar, setting both palms flat on either side and frowning. "You don't get to come in here and demand information. I don't know who the hell you are, and I don't trust masked freaks."

Jaune sighed internally. The diplomatic approach had failed once again. His hand shot out and he grabbed Junior by the collar, pulling him up and onto the bar, slamming his head against it.

His other hand drew Tranquility and unfolded it into its complete form, placing the end of the suppressor against Junior's head in a display of aggression that the man certainly hadn't been expecting.

"I'm not demanding, Junior. I'm asking politely."

Junior's muffled response was clear enough. "You call this asking politely?"

Jaune nodded slowly. "Let's just say if I start demanding, things will become very clear very quickly."

Gods he was thankful he'd watched so many Spruce Willis movies as a kid. That and the fact that _Intimidating Presence_ had activated helped.

"Look, you let me go, I give you what you want. You want information, I can give it to you, but not with my face pushed up against my bar."

Jaune relented, releasing his grip on the man's collar and giving Tranquility a spin, collapsing it and stowing it on his belt in one fluid motion.

Junior dusted himself off, adjusting his vest and tie quickly. "What'd'you wanna know?"

"I'm looking for a Huntress. Blake Belladonna. Black hair, medium height. Black, purple and white."

Junior nearly slammed the glass back down from where he'd just picked it up. "Why the hell do you think I'd know where she is? I'm an information broker, not a bloody cop!"

Jaune tilted his head to the side slightly in much the same way Cadejo did.

Junior took that as a threat, and paled quickly. "I'll ask around, though. Do you know if she's in the city?"

"I don't believe so."

Junior nodded, pouring himself a measure of brandy. "Alright. I'll check with a few people I know, call in a few favors. But it'll cost you. I don't work for free."

"You do now."

One of Junior's hands strayed under the counter. "No, I don't. You have to pay, like everyone else."

"Are you sure you want to do this? It won't end well for you. I've given you ample warning."

Junior waved a single hand and suddenly the security-slash-gang-members raised their weapons, all pointed at him.

"Don't say I didn't warn you, Junior."

Junior's other hand came up from beneath the bar, clutching what looked like an oversized bat. "You have no idea how many times I hear that. Funny thing is, I rarely regret my decisions."

Jaune withdrew Tranquility once more, his other hand creating a _Mana Flash_ , keeping it in his palm.

There was a single beat of stillness as the music thundered on, and Jaune moved like liquid, throwing the _Mana Flash_ into the air above him as he tilted his head downwards and away from it, as opposed to the surrounding men that watched it soar into the air before it detonated.

Jaune found out something interesting about the Abominae Mask. The lenses, for lack of a better term, protected his eyes from the flash. Even looking away he had expected to see some kind of light, but the film over his eyes solidified to protect them, already unsealing and freeing his vision the instant the light-show was over.

He could hear the cluster of armed men groaning in pain, and he moved quickly, hand quickly brushing against the metal of their weapons, _Ferrokinesis_ bending and warping them into unusable messes in their hands.

All that remained was Junior, who, thanks to his Aura, had managed to recover his eyesight by the time Jaune had finished with the men, aiming what was now a rocket launcher at the teen.

"You'll hit your own men, Junior," Jaune said, the eerie rasp of his voice doing Junior no favors in the confidence department. "Are you sure you want to do that?"

Junior, emboldened in the face of fear, fired the rocket launcher with a snarl.

Jaune shot it out of the air with a _Spinning Mana Bullet_ , letting the fire splash across him without effect, flickering weakly against his Aura.

Junior wasn't dissuaded, though, instead leaping over the bar and taking a swing with his now mecha-shifted bat, the metal object soaring straight over Jaune's head and hitting only air as the teen ducked, Tranquility barking like a dog underneath a pillow as he placed the tip against Junior's chest and pulled the trigger, the point-blank buckshot nearly shattering Junior's Aura right then and there.

The man hit the ground with a thud, a groan escaping his lips as Jaune tossed Tranquility in the air, grabbing it by the forestock and pumping it with one hand before flipping it back, hand comfortably coming to rest on the grip once more.

"Wrong call, Junior. I guess this is one of those oh-so-rare times you have a regret, or several."

 _Sixth Sense_ triggered before Jaune could further capitulate on his sudden advantage, and he brought a _Mana Shield_ up to block the sudden attack, a small girl in white flipping back off the shield, her boots glinting, or at least the blades attached to the rear of them.

A near-identical girl wearing black and red approached from his other side, claws mounted on a set of gloves. Two sets of piercing green eyes stared at him, watching his every move.

"Call off your little attack dogs. I don't want to hurt anyone else if I don't have to."

Both sisters winced as they heard his voice for the first time, but they maintained their stances, eyes quickly flicking to Junior as Jaune stowed Tranquility on his belt.

Junior didn't halt their attack, though, instead pulling himself back far enough that he could stand up. "Get him."

Both girls moved in perfect unison, weapons carving through the air towards him, but Jaune just wasn't in the mood.

A quick _Flash Step_ backwards took him out of the path of their weapons, and he simply stared at the one in white, freezing her in place as the one in red stumbled and fell, also unable to move. That was a surprise, but a welcome one.

This was also a good time to test out a skill he'd had for some time and never had a chance to use. Jaune cast _Mindbend_ on the one in white as she broke free from his Basilisk's Glare-inflicted temporary paralysis.

He had no idea what it would do, but considering the two girls seemed linked somehow, he hoped it would work on both of them.

The one in white took a single step towards him before _Mindbend_ took hold, and the sudden screams in stereo were enough to surprise Jaune as both the girl in white and the girl in red were suddenly scrambling backwards from him, eyes widened and their lungs pumping as much air as they could get, hyperventilating.

 **[** _ **Mindbend**_ **has inflicted Fear on targets: Melanie Malachite and Miltia Malachite!]**

 **[** _ **Mindbend**_ **can now inflict status effect Fear!]**

Jaune dismissed the window, turning back to Junior. "I did warn you. Find out where she went. I'll be back tomorrow night to find out. Do not disappoint me."

And with that, Jaune left a bunch of semi-blinded gangsters, two traumatised teenagers and one very worried information broker behind as he stepped out into the evening air, strode far enough down the street that he knew he was far enough to be out of eyesight, and re-equipped his usual gear.

That mask was dangerous.

* * *

 **Well, that's that. We finally get to see Mindbend in action, too, I've been waiting for a good opportunity to use that, and I couldn't help it. We also finally get to see the Abominae Mask, which has been in Jaune's inventory for... some time.**

 **Oh, before I get into reviews... WHAT DID THEY DO TO OUR BLOND NOODLE'S HAIR! IT'S SO SHORT! THE WARRIOR'S WOLFTAIL, NO!**

 **Now, let me delve into this week's reviews.**

 **Shadow of God: Regardless of what the general consensus is or not, is does lend a tad bit of accuracy to the decision I've made, which is justification enough for some who may or may not believe it to be an unnecessary or unworthy change, though as for canon I imagine you are right on that. As for realistic stat systems, it's a fine line to walk. I've been writing this for over a year now, and I've learned a hell of a lot of stuff about balancing things. Sometimes you have to sacrifice balance for story, though, and I'm fine with doing that. It isn't always about having the perfect solution, sometimes it's about having what is most entertaining. Does Jaune need an infinite inventory or Mana? No, of course not. Challenge adds depth, and diversity isn't always the best strategy, but this is, first and foremost, written as entertainment. You don't want to hear about Jaune making thirty-five trips to a store in a day to buy as much ore as he can carry at a time to smelt, because that wouldn't be interesting. It's better if he does it all in one trip, especially considering how much stuff is going to be required to get the higher levels of Crafting, for example. I have tried to drastically limit quests from being quite simple, and instead have relegated them to significant events or had the lesser quests have lesser rewards. Damn it I started another essay-length reply, not again.**

 **tjbruiser99: Well, to be fair, you don't know Cinder is injured or not. She may well not be. Also there weren't actually all that many casualties of Hunters and hunter-students in Beacon. Most of the deaths were civilians or non-Hunter-path students doing more civilian-based classes. Beacon was never completely populated with Hunters-in-training, as I think I mentioned at one point. Probably should have done something to make that a little clearer.**

 **Reesesracer: Sike.**

 **typhonyx: I was going to look for the exact quote, but it doesn't really matter and this chapter is late enough as it is, so I'll just say you're probably right. However, for the sake of Systema, consider it an AU change.**

 **Kalbario: Whilst an interesting concept, I don't really see it as a necessary addition. It does seem a little pointless, even with a small buff. Jaune's summons aren't supposed to replace him in combat as much as they serve as support. They're there to back him up, to give him a few bonuses in the form of the Perks he acquires when he creates them the first time. Having a set catchphrase does sort of take it all the way up to Pokemon status, at that point. I'll check out Solo Leveling quickly, because anything with summons and familiars finds its way onto my view-list in some way, shape or form, and if it really grabs my attention or I can figure out something to implement in a similar fashion, then I have no doubt it'll end up in the System at some point.**

 **Swiftcaliston: Kagune? Am I missing something?**

 **DuplicateUserName: Qrow's Mana is uniquely used in his bird form. Unlike Jaune, he has an intrinsic feel of how much Mana he has access to, though it isn't Mana in a more System-like sense. Consider Jaune's to be a bit more... refined, and Qrow's to be the raw power with a singular focus.**

 **jedimasterb10: Accidentally teaching myself Python stems from the fact that I was sick of using my pre-established Loot Drop Chart which was just an absolute pain to roll for more than a couple times. Having to roll that thing like fifty times for the aftermath of the Fall of Beacon was a pain in the ass, so I wrote a program that would roll it. Then I wrote a GUI for that with ttk, then I wrote a bunch more to do a bunch of the drop tables. It still isn't finished, and it's about as well-designed as a dead frog, but it works. Oh, as for your other point... :P**

 **razmire: I actually have a number of reasons for going after Blake first, aside from story reasons, but I wanted to wait until I'd seen at least a little bit of Volume 7 to get a hang of what Atlas is like.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: That is one hell of an innuendo.**

 **Drakon Hunter: Unfortunately, for story and lore reasons, I'm not going to answer that sort of question :P You'll find out eventually, but let's just say this was the idea I had before I even started writing Systema. It actually predates the knowledge of the Brothers, so I can technically say that I called it.**

 **Guest: I might've rewatched How To Train Your Dragon. Granted, he can still train those with or without the saddle, so there's no real loss. This just means that not only Jaune can ride Shirdal. Oh, and as for skills for his summons, well, he's a few Greater summons away from your ideas coming to fruition, in a sense.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Gods I remember that tumblr post where someone did all that math. I'm going to do some finagling in the spreadsheet to add in a kind of blood-metal, at least, because that shit's dope AF. Making Penny out of that, though, that's a choice. Definitely a choice. Probably not going to happen, of course, seeing as I already have a Penny plan that isn't anywhere near as awe-inspiring, but it's an interesting idea nonetheless.**

 **F14M3RZ: Just as a hypothetical, exactly how much use would household-appliance transmutation be in a combat scenario? Like, does it have to be the same mass, because if so you could just throw a rock instead. Otherwise, turning a pebble into a fridge would be an interesting weapon.**

 **Jowasut: Look who's talking lmao. What's wrong with my Beluga? It has little wings poorly photoshopped on it!**

 **TheB: Pretty sure half of what I write can be taken as innuendo. Mostly when it's unintended.**

 **Silly Thoughts: Living up to your username I see. Nah, the perk is permanent, Alcmena doesn't have to be out for that to work. Except for the fact that I practically forgot about it in the early chapters, I'm real bad at memory stuff.**

 **Radmar: Ah. Definitely thick-headed, but only on Wednesdays. That's my stupid day. I really appreciate everything you've taken the time and effort to talk about and list, and many of the points you've made resonate with me. Especially the Yang thing. I just might not have been clear enough, but her arm was quite literally incinerated, and as for romance, well, isn't that what a romantic partner is supposed to be? Your best friend, your confidant? It's all up for discussion, of course, I'm not claiming to know more than anyone else. I'm mostly just wary of pushing it too fast, to where it seems even less realistic than it already does. 87% is significantly high, though, I have to imagine. If this was rotten tomatoes I'd be outstripping most blockbuster movies that have been released lately. Oh, and one last thing, the public spreadsheet has a tab for the summons, if that'll help clear things up.**

 **armentho: I'm still working on the dungeon concept, but it does effectively boil down to how I already had them implemented, at least, on a story-level. I'm mostly working on the technical level so I have a more concrete basis for how they work, such as naming them, adding rewards, and determining bosses. I looked up the 20mm PAW. That is one hell of an interesting weapon. For the sake of System, I don't think I'll be adding any more PACKs than what the spreadsheet has already, but it's definitely up there for an Atlesian firearm.**

 **Aguion12: I'll let you in on a little secret. Alcmena will definitely be Sentient, when that's unlocked. No more teasers, though :P**

 **Guest: Hate to have to say this, but if you think this is copy-pasting, I definitely don't think you could do a better job. I might be more inclined to appreciate your feedback if you gave yourself a name to be addressed as, but seeing as you only feel like telling me to 'be creative', and never trying it for yourself, I'm just going to consider this the last time I'll answer a review of yours. You, specifically, not other guests.**

 **IHateGenericCereal: Ah, a Name of the Game reader haha. Yeah, I know what you mean, but I told myself when I started that this was not to be an edgy SI. I've tried my hand at more edgy characters, and even in this chapter I've pushed Jaune to that limit, even as the story gets darker, but that's mostly due to the mask. There will be consequences for that, too. It would be smart for Jaune to look into other things outside of his more typical 'raw power give me more' attitude, and that's what I've been starting to focus on in the coming chapters.**

 **That about does it for everything this week, thank you all for stopping by, consider this my official apology for the occasional rant and essay that I may or may not write, and if you feel like you want to help me continue writing, feel free to stop by my Pa Treon and drop some spare change, if you want to. I'd really appreciate it, and you get benefits, too!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	60. Returning to the Scene of the Crime

**Hey, quick question for all of you before we start the chapter. If you would be interested in seeing a 'multi-dimensional theatre' style fic from me I've got one I've been kinda workshopping in my off-time. I'm sure you've seen them around, but I was wondering if anyone would like to read one from me. I always have little oneshots floating around in my head. Plus I'd get to exercise those strange crossover ideas I get from time to time. Just lemme know!**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid, Justas Kondrusevicius and Fittzym for supporting me this month!**

* * *

That had gotten out of control a little. Well, a lot, but who was keeping track?

Jaune sighed. He was keeping track. He pushed aside the bed covers and stood up, taking a deep breath as the morning sun streamed in the window of the small hotel room he'd taken for the night.

It was strangely nostalgic, being back in the hotel he'd first stayed in when he'd originally entered Vale. The Golden Winds was the same as it ever was, aside from a few pockmarked dents on the exterior, but that was to be expected.

It'd been a tad bit more expensive than last time, but considering Jaune's financial situation that wasn't the slightest problem. He was more than happy forking over a hundred Lien for the night if it meant he got to sleep somewhere comfortable.

He was going to be sleeping out in the wilds more often than not in his future, he imagined, so he had to enjoy it while it lasted.

He was disappointed to find out that the cafe he'd first eaten at in Vale was closed, but he wasn't here to relive his early days. He had work to do, and a destination in mind.

Firstly, he was going to purchase something to attach to Shirdal's saddle, like a friend-or-foe identifier. He didn't exactly want to get shot out of the air again.

Thankfully, it didn't take all that long to find a place that had what he was looking for in stock. Vale was big, and despite the recent tragedy, people still got about their business as best they could.

Another expense, and now he'd spent a total of 250 Lien in Vale. Considering the amount of wealth he had at his disposal, that was perfectly fine with him.

He definitely got some stares in the public park where he summoned Shirdal and attached the equipment to the saddle, but many of the people recognized him from the Vytal Tournament, and those who didn't weren't going to approach the teenager fiddling with some electrical equipment on the back of a giant golden Griffon with a saddle on it.

He clambered atop Shirdal, running one hand through the head-feathers as he adjusted his positioning, feet settling into the stirrups on the saddle.

There was enough space for Shirdal to take off, thankfully, and that was exactly what the Griffon did, wings beating their steady rhythm as Jaune warily watched the anti-air defenses.

They swiveled, tracked him for a moment, and Jaune was about to dismiss Shirdal when they rotated back to their default positions. That was good, it meant the friend-or-foe identifier had worked.

He urged Shirdal to continue flying, and once they were far enough away Jaune brought Alcmena and Apollo out to join Shirdal, the two avian souls cawing and chirping as they found themselves soaring through the air alongside, large wings adding to the sounds of the sky.

He would be back in Vale by the evening, but first he was going to go train. And what better place to train than Mountain Glenn?

* * *

Mountain Glenn had barely changed since the last time he'd been here. There was still a massive crater where the Shai-Hulud had emerged from, near the center of the cityscape, and if he looked closely he could see the much, much smaller crater from the time he'd killed that Goliath.

His destination was the former, not the latter, and he urged Shirdal to dive, wind blowing blond hair back as the ground grew larger and larger in his view.

Shirdal touched down easily, and Jaune half-slung himself out of the saddle, one foot still in the stirrup as Shirdal slowed to a stop, where the teen dropped to the damaged ground just next to the giant crater.

He peered over the edge as Alcmena and Apollo scoured the skies, Shirdal taking off once more to join the two.

The crater was much like a basin, complete with what could feasibly be referred to as a drain in the center, the near-perfect circle in the ground bringing back all sorts of memories from AWBN's first assignment.

Jaune dropped into the crater, keeping his balance as he slid down the rubble, scattering chunks of concrete and rock in his wake as he reached the flatter part of the crater.

There had to be items left over from when they'd killed the Shai-Hulud. Good items, too. All he had to do was find them.

And, after a few minutes of searching, Jaune stumbled across exactly what he was looking for. A small stack of items sat neatly underneath a chunk of concrete. He shoved it aside, and quickly began collecting the items.

 **[You have acquired: 49 Inert Dust, 17 Shai-Hulud Teeth, 1 Shai-Hulud Skull, Predator PACK, Telum PACK, Sandstorm PACK.]**

He couldn't find any Lien, which was disappointing, but he had to imagine, after all this time, it must've been either taken by scavengers, who'd strangely not bothered with the rest of the stuff, or it had simply been moved by something else. Perhaps the wind? There was also the chance that there hadn't ever been any Lien in the first place, too.

He wasn't disappointed, though, far from it. Three PACKs and a couple Shai-Hulud parts were more than appreciated. He didn't know what the weapons were, but he'd check once he was somewhere safer. Perhaps he'd head back to the Arcave and construct them. He had to imagine the cave was still there, and he jotted that down in his mental to-do list, making sure to remember.

He could hear snarling in the distance as Apollo lit up a cluster of Beowolves, and Alcmena sent him a mental warning of a cluster of Ursa to his south, so he unsheathed Crocea Mors and set about climbing back out of the crater, headed south. He had work to do.

* * *

Ever since Jaune, alongside the rest of AWBN, all of RRYN and the Atlesian Military had killed the Shai-Hulud, Mountain Glenn had ceased to be a Raid Zone. Which, whilst disappointing on a selfish level, was definitely a good thing for Remnant in the long run.

But, as previously stated, it did mean that killing Grimm here was a little less worthwhile compared to a Raid Zone.

Not that Jaune knew where another Raid Zone was. Perhaps Beacon counted now?

He didn't really want to go to Beacon again. That would be opening himself up to all sorts of memories. Ones he didn't really want to think about right now.

Jaune decapitated another Ursa with a _Mana Slash_ before blocking a claw with his shield, one of Alcmena's feathers spearing the Ursa Major through the chest, where Jaune cleaved one of its legs off, already moving onto his next target.

Only to find he'd already decimated the group of Ursa. That was disappointing, he was just getting into the swing of things.

With both his Huntsman and his Banker titles equipped, Jaune was set to make a nice sum of experience and Lien from this, but that was only if the Grimm would pick a fight with him. He'd barely seen any, and the ones he had seen weren't exactly the biggest threats.

It had to be the Wyvern drawing them out of Mountain Glenn. That had to be why there were so few Grimm. Perhaps in the forests between here and Vale there were plenty more Grimm, but as far as Prof- no, Headmistress Goodwitch had explained, the Emerald Forest would probably be full of Hunters as well.

To think he'd basically been told not to help. Granted, he had enough on his plate, but it did feel a little harsh for Goodwitch to shut him down.

Cadejo barked a warning from the distance as Ishara and Freyja chased another cluster of Ursa towards Jaune, and he turned, the scorpion and the boar breaking off as the Ursa continued on their way towards him, lumbering paws pounding the ground, bony spikes glinting white in the sunlight as Jaune raised one hand, a _Mana Pulse_ impacting at the feet of the ursine Grimm, practically disintegrating the front two of the group.

The third and fourth he put into the dust with two blasts from Tranquility, the fifth he killed with a spin, Crocea Mors cutting through the outstretched jaw.

It left only the sixth, the Ursa Major of the cluster, and it looked angry, incensed that Jaune had slaughtered its brethren. Or it was just an Ursa like any other and was just genetically disposed towards hating him. Probably the second one, now that he thought about it.

Jaune took the first swipe against his shield, allowing the weight of the Ursa Major to push him backwards before he fired out a _Mana Tether_ , watching as it stuck on its side, the bear-Grimm trying in vain to brush it aside as the follow-up _Mana Cannon_ shot that Jaune fired ruptured the beast, practically tearing it asunder.

"Man, that's a powerful combo," Jaune remarked aloud, watching chunks of Ursa Major hit the ground in inky black splotches.

And it was, too, according to the amount of damage he'd dealt. That _Mana Tether_ modifier was nothing to joke about.

Jaune couldn't afford to stall and admire his handiwork, though. More hostiles were on the approach, according to his summons, and that meant he had to be on guard, not staring at previously-dispatched Ursa.

It was looking to be a long, fulfilling, prosperous day of training, and Jaune was more than ready for that.

* * *

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You gained 1,992,921XP and 39,824L!]**

 **[You've reached Level 46! You've gained 5 Stat Points! Skills have leveled!]**

 **[Loot Acquired: 50 Inert Dust, 10 Beowolf Claws, 4 Beowolf Pelts, 1 Alpha Beowolf Claw, 4 Ursa Skulls, 6 Ursa Pelts, 11 Ursa Claws, 3 Creep Hides, 1 Creep Bone, 1 Anaxis Seed, 2 Grade III Lightning Dust Crystals.]**

Jaune was more than happy with the day's work. Pushing his hair out of his face and wiping away the sweat that lingered on his brow, Jaune clambered back atop Shirdal, the griffon taking off once more, Vale the destination.

More accurately, Junior's Club.

The sun had nearly set already, the hazy orange horizon barely visible through the thick cloud cover when he was on the ground, but up in the air, on the back of Shirdal, it was far clearer as they breached the lower cloud layer, leaving Jaune very refreshed.

Clouds would do that, as it turned out, and suddenly all the sweat Jaune had been wearing was suddenly replaced with a film of cold water.

It'd be a difficult job to convince Jaune to complain about it, though. It was, as he'd stated, refreshing, and frankly there was something significantly more important going on as Shirdal began the descent towards Vale.

The IFF tag was still working as intended, thankfully, and Jaune was urge Shirdal to land nearby the club, giving him the time he would need to change into his somewhat-makeshift disguise without giving away his identity.

If he came flying in aback a golden Griffon it was more than likely to give him away.

A nearby rooftop would do nicely as a covert location to rapidly equip his suit and the Abominae Mask, and, considering Jaune's curiosity, he stalled the mask equip, instead withdrawing one of the Ursa Skulls he'd acquired during his trip.

The mask took to it much like it had taken to the Beowolf Skull, wrapping black tendrils around it and consuming it into its murky depths.

Now, it more resembled a broader Ursa rather than the more narrow Beowolf, and when Jaune equipped it he was rather pleased to find that it gave him plus 25% to his Strength instead of the plus 25% to Agility that the Beowolf Skull provided.

That was definitely appreciated, especially in a fight. Being able to deal more damage was always a benefit. That and his Fortified Body perk meant that half of his STR was added to his END when figuring out his total HP. So, more health and more damage.

Jaune didn't even bother with _Surface Walk_ , instead dropping down the fire escape on the side of the building, occasionally grabbing onto one of the railings to stall his descent, Aura pooling on the bottom of his soles as his feet hit the pavement, the teen stepping out of the empty alley and into the somewhat-busy street, his mask drawing significant attention as he ignored the bouncers, stepping straight into the club.

The music, whilst different from the last time, was much the same in tempo and attitude, and despite himself Jaune could feel one hand tapping along to the rhythm against the grip of Tranquility.

He knew he must've made an intimidating sight to anyone who saw him, and he hoped that and his prior appearance the night before would be enough to dissuade anyone from approaching, unless they had what he wanted.

"Oh, great. It's you again. New mask?"

Junior's oh-so-warm reception made Jaune smile under the mask. "I hope you have what I asked for. Wouldn't want a repeat of last night."

Jaune could see that Junior was still moving gingerly, careful not to bump his midsection, where Tranquility had fired the night prior.

"I've got what you want. For free. As you asked. Wasn't easy, either."

Jaune nodded, taking the offered scroll and reading the document, eyes scanning the attached image with keen interest. "Thank you for getting this, Junior. Consider this repayment for my… hasty actions. I'd appreciate if we could stay on good terms. After all, I may just need information in the future, and I'd hate to have to break some more things."

Jaune placed down a two golden Lien cards, a total of 2000 Lien, on the counter next to the returned scroll, after he'd forwarded the information to his own and promptly deleted any trace he'd done so.

Junior nodded and accepted the recompense without a word, but before he withdrew the scroll he looked over to the other corner of the bar. "What'd you do to the twins? I've never seen that sort of thing before."

Jaune wasn't exactly going to come outright and tell the man what he'd done, but he did sort of owe him an explanation. Turning his two most trusted henchwomen into quivering wrecks did attract attention.

"I scared them. This mask isn't just for show."

It was the wrong thing to say, apparently. "I've seen masks like that before. It wasn't the mask, that much is for certain, otherwise we'd have all felt it."

Whether or not Junior believed his lie, Jaune didn't really care. "Trade secret. Sorry."

Jaune turned around, leaving the large man at the bar to call out to him. "You got a name? Didn't get it last time you were here, considering the whole 'professional disagreement'."

Jaune didn't bother turning back.

* * *

It looked a lot like Blake. It was blurry, hard to see, and the footage was grainy atop of that, but it still looked a lot like her. The outfit was different, but the bow was present atop the head, and her weapon was partially visible.

Jaune doubted that it was anyone else. Question was, what was she doing getting on a boat?

He didn't know its destination, unfortunately, which meant he had to find the place where the boat had departed, and ask around. Thankfully, that wouldn't be too difficult, but as dark as it had gotten, he'd have to wait until the next day before he was able to do any more investigating.

His quest had updated, still incomplete, and it would only complete when he found out tomorrow.

Which left some time for some… less required but equally important tidying up he'd been meaning to do. Like, for example, the Arcave.

In hindsight, it had been a childish notion. Staying at Beacon would have been definitely preferable, of course, but he couldn't have expected it to last forever. He'd been too ambitious, too forward, too excited by the prospects of his own little place to call home. It would have been fine, of course, if it had been a small place to relax, but trying to completely outfit an entire workshop alongside turning it into a permanent living space for eight people was just too much for him to handle on his own. Especially with classes, assignments, and training.

Not that any of that mattered, now.

He had a minimum of three things in his inventory that he needed to craft, too, which meant that stopping in and checking on the mix of his and Ruby's forging equipment wasn't a bad idea at all.

It was, thanks to that, that his destination was the Arcave.

It had started to snow, now, cold flecks against his skin, coating the ground in a fine layer of white as he closed in on the man-made cavern he'd constructed, having taken the long route through the Emerald Forest instead of the practically non-existent methods of travel up to Beacon. He didn't want to requisition a Bullhead just to ferry him up to the still-ruined school, only to climb back down. It wasn't all that far a walk if he stuck to the edge of the forest.

The cliffside loomed in front of him, but he refused to look up, instead focusing his eyes on the clearing he'd spent so much time in, the white of the snow that coated the ground outlining various divots and chunks that had been disturbed by his training.

The doorway to the Arcave was just as he'd left it, if a tad bit snowier, and Jaune stepped inside, one hand on Tranquility as he moved, the corridor somewhat less convenient to be swinging a longsword around in.

It was clear, though, devoid of life. He was glad he hadn't bought any furniture, too, otherwise he doubted it would still be in any kind of good condition.

He took the stairs two at a time, descending into the workshop, his free hand conjuring _Candlelight_.

Much like upstairs, it was empty, but the quiet hum of the active Energy Dust that powered the workshop added a familiar ambience to the cavernous construct.

He guided the _Candlelight_ to illuminate the workshop as he began flicking on the machines as he released his grasp on the grip of Tranquility, instead opening his inventory.

He had a number of things he wanted to work on. First, he turned on a burner and grabbed a glassware beaker, setting it down on the chemistry station.

Second, he strode over to the industrial grinder that sat mounted to one of the workbenches and grabbed a number of things out of his inventory, setting them on the counter.

It took next to no time for Jaune to begin feeding the grinder an Abiare Herb, the leafy, orange and yellow herb quickly becoming a similarly colored powder.

Seventeen more of the herbs followed suit, adding to the pile, and he found himself suddenly nearly twelve-thousand XP richer from just the Abiare Herbs.

It wasn't enough for a level, but it got him close, and even closer still when he ground down the last remaining herb in his inventory, the Rinade Herb.

He strode back to the chemistry station and dropped a small amount of the Ground Abiare Herb into the beaker alongside an Alchemic Reagent, watching and waiting in interest.

The Alchemic Reagent crackled and burst, nearly filling the beaker with a glowing white liquid, which quickly began to blend and mix with the powdered orangish-yellow herb to form into an orange liquid. The smell of oranges permeated the workshop, a refreshing scent, and Jaune took the beaker off from the top of the burner and placed an Inert Dust on the countertop.

Instinct told him what to do, despite common sense objecting, and Jaune poured the contents of the beaker atop the Inert Dust.

He watched in awe as the crystal seemed to capture the liquid, forming a glassware bottle around the orange fluid, ending in a crystalline cap that seemed to shine as the _Candlelight_ flickered off its sharp angled edges.

He repeated the process with the Ground Rinade Herb, this time creating a deep purple liquid in an identical bottle, sitting comfortably next to the previous bottle.

A quick _Observe_ identified the both.

 **[Draught of the Bull]**

 **[An orange potion that tastes, unsurprisingly, of oranges, the Draught of The Bull provides a temporary boost to Strength when consumed.]**

 **[Draught of the Tortoise]**

 **[A deep purple potion that tastes somewhat like grapes, the Draught of The Tortoise provides a temporary boost to Wisdom when consumed.]**

He pocketed both bottles, stowing them in his inventory, instead withdrawing five Beowolf Claws and another reagent, making another Nigredo quickly, ticking him over into his twelfth _Crafting_ level.

No new recipes unlocked with that twelfth level, but that was okay with Jaune. He had plenty more things to craft, and the top of that list was the three unassembled PACKs that had dropped from the Shai-Hulud all that time ago.

Question was, which was he to assemble first? He didn't really know what any of them were, but he had to make a choice at some point.

Telum, Sandstorm or Predator. If he was being honest, all the names sounded interesting. It was hard to make a decision.

Jaune shrugged. "Eenie meenie miney mo, catch an Ursa by the toe…"

He finished the rest of the rhyme in his head, before withdrawing the Sandstorm PACK and opening it, beginning to lay out the pieces one by one, the instruction manual sat next to them.

"Connect piece AB5 to AB4…"

It was beginning to take shape, and once it was finished, Jaune took a step backwards, marvelling at his latest creation, and the twelve-thousand XP that came with it.

It was a belt-fed heavy machine-gun, made of a tan-colored metal. A tan box with the empty ammo belt sat mounted behind the main grip, and a folded bipod sat on the front by the forestock.

It was pretty impressive, Jaune had to admit.

 **[Sandstorm]**

 **[A belt-fed bullpup HMG designed for extended use in hostile environments, Sandstorm is chambered in 7.62mm, and comes with a box magazine that holds 150 rounds.]**

Jaune didn't own any ammunition aside from his 12 gauge buckshot, unfortunately, so he couldn't load the weapon, but that was beside the point. It looked rugged, and the description seemed to enforce that point. This thing could take a beating and keep spitting out rounds.

Which, he imagined, was exactly what it was designed to do.

It was large enough that he couldn't stow it on his belt much like Tranquility, but it did feature a few hooks atop the top for a strap he could affix to the weapon.

Jaune hefted it, testing its feel before stowing it back in his inventory, withdrawing the next of the remaining two PACKs.

Another near-quarter hour passed before Jaune finished constructing the second of three weapons, a much smaller one this time.

Predator, unlike Sandstorm, was a handgun. This, in and of itself, was nothing special, but it was the distinct size and heft of the handgun that really separated itself from the more typical sidearms found in most stores.

 **[Predator]**

 **[A bulky pistol chambered in .50 GK, hard to wield but possessing some of the highest damage capabilities of all small-size weapons.]**

Jaune had never heard of .50 GK, but considering he'd heard of .50 BGK, he had to imagine that there wasn't all that significant a difference. Presumably .50 GK was the pistol round as opposed to .50 BGK, which Jaune knew was the caliber of round that Ruby loaded into Crescent Rose.

Unlike Sandstorm, Predator attached itself with ease to the magplate on his belt, but unless he was to make it somewhat awkward to carry, he'd have to put away either Crocea Mors or Tranquility, unless he wanted to get some new magplates to put on his clothing.

 **[A Title has ranked up!]**

 **[Armsmaster Equipped has become Armsmaster Arsenal!]**

Dropping it in his inventory, Jaune pulled out the final PACK, Telum, and began constructing it.

Unlike either Sandstorm or Predator, Telum was very, very complicated. It took him nearly an hour to build the thing, but when he was done, he was very, very happy with the final product.

 **[Telum]**

 **[Telum is an advanced Compound Bow that fires arrows, designed to be easily compactible and yet still feature a high draw-power. Includes a custom-built quiver that can print arrows, as long as it is fed with the necessary materials.]**

Slinging the quiver over his shoulder, Jaune placed Tranquility into his inventory, putting the compact form of Telum where Tranquility had been.

His inventory became one Iron Ore lighter as he withdrew it, placing it in the bottom tray of the quiver, closing it back up as the machine began to hum.

After a short time Jaune had a quiver with five arrows in it, and he withdrew one, admiring just how sharp the broadhead at the tip of the arrow was.

He quickly stepped outside and nocked an arrow with an amateurish attempt, and sighted down Telum, pulling back. He sort of knew how to aim a bow, and he released the arrow, watching the projectile soar off and thwack against a tree-trunk, just to the left of where he'd been aiming.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** ** _Weapon Proficiency: Specialized Ranged (Passive):_** _Thanks to the System, you are now capable of utilizing ranged weapons that otherwise would not fit into any general category._ ** _Level 1; XP 1/12._** **]**

Grabbing it by the shaft, Jaune tugged it free of the tree, placing it back in the quiver on his shoulder and once more collapsing the bow, placing it back on his belt.

Three new weapons, all with their own uses. Jaune was more than happy with the evening's progress, and that wasn't including the two draughts he'd made. And to think, in his inventory he had the potential to make even more.

The rest of the night held nearly as much potential as it had only a short while ago, and Jaune had nowhere to be.

At least, not until the next day.

* * *

 **Surprise! Jaune returns to Mountain Glenn, as I'd always planned, and my newly adjusted loot tables come into play. That was a fun couple days of scripting and balancing. Telum, Predator and Sandstorm have existed in the spreadsheet for a while now, as with many of the other PACKs, but it was a pleasant surprise to see them drawn out of all the possibilities. I've always been a sucker for bullpup firearms, too, which is why Sandstorm is one, even if it is a little unconventional. Telum was originally just a compound bow, but I added the quiver recently, just for the sake of balance and giving the weapon a little bit more of a reason to be used over other silenced firearms. Predator is pretty much just a Deagle, if I'm being honest.**

 **Other than that, a few things have happened, I'm making some adjustments to Bound Souls and Elementals, primarily around HP and Elemental evolution, but other than that nothing really important enough to make significant mention of here.**

 **Now, I'll dive straight into reviews.**

 **Dragon lord Syed 101: At the rate I've been writing I wouldn't expect that to happen for some time. I imagine at the minimum the next two months of chapters will be focused around Jaune and Blake, seeing as how long it takes me to actually write stuff half the time. Took me over a year to get through Volumes 1 to 3, to be fair.**

 **DuplicateUserName: For the sake of visualization, I'd envisioned the Abominae Mask to cover the entire head almost like a helmet, so there wouldn't be any above-neck clues as to identity. Though giving Jaune the ability to look like some kind of eldritch god is pretty neat.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: What a coincidence, I just wrote up a Paladin for a 5e game that's coming up soon. Nothing complicated, especially considering the people running it are all amateur, so I have to actively limit my backstory, haha. I need to go back through my PHB and check some stuff, there are always good ideas in there that I might steal. And of course your innuendo made me laugh, I have the mind of a fourteen-year-old half the time.**

 **armentho: Jaune isn't perfect, and the mask has some unseen effects. I'll leave it at that for now, so as not to spoil anything. Oh, and Jaune has to physically touch the metal in order to apply Ferrokinesis, but otherwise it is a surprisingly effective deterrent. The Pengrimm is in the spreadsheet and has a summon laid out, no worries there. I loved it when I saw it.**

 **Sm0keyPanda: Now I just wanna watch The Matrix again. And watch John Wick and Chapter 2 and then Parabellum again, despite only having watched Parabellum like a couple weeks ago for like the third time.**

 **typhonyx: They aren't dead, they're just currently a little... dormant. As in I'm working on something that will fix that issue. Poison punches are still there! Any time Jaune lands a melee attack I roll to see if it has any effect, and thus far I've rolled really, really poorly. Seriously poorly, but I've always had really poor luck at dice and stuff like that. The only thing I've ever really had good luck with has been Blackjack, but that's a whole other story. The mask was added pretty early in, and I'm not pushing it hard so much as using it for a purpose I'd never really expected. It just showed up this chapter and the previous chapter simply because it was convenient. I will admit that I culled the relationship meter, though, that was poorly thought-out.**

 **DeathXMaster: Well, if the choice was between wearing a mask and not wearing a mask, the smarter choice is to wear a mask, even if it is a minimal amount of protection. Also, he's never used Ferrokinesis or Mindbend in public before, and considering Mindbend is a purely mental skill, it's hard to pin down. Jaune is doing what he knows he can do to protect his identity, even if what he is doing isn't the smartest plan. He's not perfect, and if he was this wouldn't be an interesting thing to read or write.**

 **IcyStream: Thanks for the explanation, and the only tentacles will probably be the Seer's tendrils. Don't think I have anything else that has tentacles in the spreadsheet, unless you count Mana Tether. As for new abilities, well... of a total of 161 currently planned skills, Jaune has 83. Which is a lot, but still not all that much when you consider some of them. Dishwashing, for example. That's an actual skill I wrote in the beginning. I have some things planned, though, including a list of artifacts that might be what you and GenericCereal are after. (One of the artifacts is a grappling hook.)**

 **Fyr RedNight: Well, at least there's someone who appreciates them. As for Jaune and the mask... I've got a few plans to go further with the concept of how far someone will go, and hopefully it catches a few people off-guard.**

 **Nagisa Tr: Read my mind. Despite the fact that Chapter 60 had been written before 59 went live, but still.**

 **Guest: You... you do realize that what Jaune does isn't necessarily what you or I would do? Like, that's gotten through to you, right?**

 **razmire: Nah, that's Ouroboros, the King Taijitu summon's special perk. The Beowolf-infused Abominae Mask is a 25% boost to Agility. You and Nagisa Tr had very similar ideas though.**

 **jedimasterb10: Man you've just made me want to rewatch the Nolan Bat-trilogy again. Too many movies, not enough time. And, now that I've seen bits and pieces of fanart of Jaune's new hair, I have to say, it's starting to grow on me, especially pieces by MRK50. His broader-jawed, floofier-haired Paladin-Jaune is great.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Well, it might not be a melee weapon, but it's definitely a different weapon. Or three. The idea to differentiate is great, but I think I have a better plan for that sort of thing. Let's just say the mask may not be alone for long.**

 **Parapraxis A51: Thanks, I really appreciate that! I've always set out to entertain people, and I'm glad to see that I'm accomplishing that!**

 **Sigma-del-Prisium: Oh no, you're going through my older chapters. The mistakes, the bad writing, I can't bear to go back. I look forward to you seeing this reply eventually, haha.**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: What is it with people and reading my mind? No kidding though ever since Jaune left Mountain Glenn after Operation Kingslayer people have been constantly asking when Jaune is going back to pick up the drops. Glad I could finally set that to rest!**

 **joshben4c: Other than the fact that Spell Sigils have a specific size, a lot of those ideas are right. The idea of stacking sigils is creative, and a Mana Nuke may just come about at some point as a spell, so stacking Mana Nukes would be... dangerous.**

 **tjbruiser99: I'm not quite sure what you're asking, but if you want to know when I update, it's every single Friday AWST, so probably Thursday night in the US. I'm in the future, baby. For the sake of it, the next chapter will be the 18th of October AWST.**

 **That was a lot of reviews. Sorry this couldn't be out any earlier today, editing this took a little longer than expected, and I was pretty busy today. If y'all ever feel like supporting me in any conceivable way, I have a Pa Treon if you wanna send an itty bit o' cash money my way, I'd really appreciate it. Don't have to, of course, I'm sure I'll live either way.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	61. Oceanic Coincidences

**Hey, all. Consider this me offering all of you an apology for not getting a chapter out these past two weeks. That's on me. Between being suddenly busy, and getting hit with a pretty awful flu that I'm still recovering from, it's safe to say I tried, and failed to get this out. As such, if this chapter isn't quite up to the typical standard, that's probably why.** **Anyway, hope you enjoy the chapter!**

 **Thank you to my wonderful Patrons; Justas Kondrusevicius, Maxstroid and Fittyzm! Thanks for supporting me, I really appreciate it!**

* * *

"And you're sure it was headed for Menagerie?"

The man ran a hand through his salt-and-pepper beard, weathered skin and sharp eyes giving even more of a clue that this man was well-experienced in the field of ocean travel. "Yeah, I'm sure. We don't get many ships headed that way, so it's usually pretty memorable when one departs. It's a dangerous stretch of ocean, more so than the jaunt over to Mistral, or Atlas."

Jaune nodded, handing the man a yellow 50 Lien card. "Thanks for the help."

The man nodded thanks, and Jaune stepped out of the dockmaster's office, headed down the wharf, mind racing a mile a minute.

Lien was an excellent memory grease, Jaune had discovered, and the dockmaster had informed him exactly what boat it was, when it had departed, and where it was headed. Meaning that Blake was on her way to Menagerie, and was definitely at least a week ahead of him.

However, it was a week on a large passenger ship, full of both passengers and cargo, so it couldn't be going that fast, especially due to the passengers. It wasn't an aircraft, so it probably had a top speed of around thirty to thirty-five knots.

Adding to that fact that it had to go up north to get around Vytal only to then head south between Sanus and Anima, and then head east, Jaune could catch it. He'd have to be fast, faster than he'd ever really been before, but he could feasibly do it.

He'd have to cross east over the top of the width of Sanus, though as he looked at his map screen, he realised that it might be preferable to head straight for Menagerie itself, south-east.

Trying to catch a boat that he had no concise location on in the middle of the ocean was a challenge that he wasn't entirely sure he was up for at this point in time.

There was an island between Sanus and Menagerie, too, that might be a good resting point to restore and restock, if there was a settlement there. Of course, he wasn't going to make it there in a day, he'd have to fly at mach speeds to even get close to that time, but Shirdal didn't tire, and flew on his own. Technically, as long as Jaune strapped himself into the saddle, he could sleep as they flew.

So, that was something he wanted to add to his shopping list. Get some links and straps that he could attach to his outfit, not only so he could strap himself to the saddle, but so he could sling Sandstorm if needed.

The more important question was how Menagerie felt about humans. Would they try and kill him on sight? Would they welcome him with open arms? Or would they just treat him like every other person that passed through any other kingdom, with mild distrust but otherwise apathetic towards him as an individual?

He didn't know. Considering the White Fang's presence, he had to assume the former, but the latter was just as likely as long as he didn't make any enemies. And, assumedly, when he met up with Blake, she could smooth anything over as best she could, just in case he did in fact ruffle some feathers.

Jaune winced. Maybe that wasn't the greatest saying to use in reference to Faunus.

He'd have to work on that.

He'd completed the quest, though. He sorted through his menus, quickly accepting the reward, a Regular Experience Orb, whatever that was. So many new things to learn, his list was getting longer.

He withdrew it, rolling it about in his palm.

It was vaguely similar to a Soul Orb in shape, a crystalline sphere with no imperfections and a glowing center, and a very similar size as well. As for what it did, well, Jaune really had only one guess. It was an orb of condensed experience, for use on a skill. Or it would give him XP for all his skills, but he doubted that.

He crushed it in his hand, feeling the influx of XP flow into his body, and he mentally directed it to one of the skills he'd had the hardest time leveling up thus far.

Jaune watched in glee as _Crafting_ went from Level 14 to Level 15 as he gained 70,000 XP, and his glee only increased as he unlocked a number of new recipes.

Amongst the new recipes, which included the ability for him to melt and process his Iron Ore, was a notification that he was very happy to see.

 **[For your increased capability with** _ **Crafting**_ **, you are now capable of creating higher-quality items when forging!]**

His mind flickered back to his previous line of reasoning as he paced about Vale. His math could be off by a significant margin, for a number of reasons.

There were too many variables. Jaune had no real concrete way of knowing when Blake would arrive in Menagerie, or even if, if something went terribly wrong out at sea, which was a reasonably common occurrence. Any of the sea-faring Grimm could have completely torn the ship asunder and left the passengers and crew drifting amongst the waters, easy pickings for the beasts.

Jaune scrubbed that image from his mind. Blake was fine. She was stronger than the majority of Beacon's students, alongside the rest of AWBN and RRYN. Some oceanic Grimm weren't enough to keep her from arriving in Menagerie. Her reasons for going were a little bit more mysterious, but that was Blake in a nutshell, effectively.

Despite all of that, it thankfully didn't change all that much about his plan. His destination would still be Menagerie, his journey a straight shot.

All he had to do now was prepare for the trip.

* * *

Never, in all his life, had he ever been so glad he was no longer afflicted by crippling motion-sickness.

The wind in his face, buffeting his hair, the rush of adrenaline, it just felt… right. Like he was right where he belonged.

Sure, the circumstances that had led here were far from perfect, but what had happened had happened, and there wasn't anything he could do to change that.

He could do plenty to prevent it from happening again, though, which was hopefully the plan.

"Man, I always get all introspection-y whenever I'm left alone with my thoughts, huh Shirdal?" Jaune vocalized, the Griffon summon tossing his head in response.

They were nearly five hours into a twelve hour flight, and this seemed like as good a time as any to stop for some lunch, especially while there was still ground beneath. He wasn't sure how he was going to stop to eat above the ocean, but that was a future-Jaune problem.

Present-Jaune was feeling rather peckish, even if all he really had were travel rations. Not the most appetizing of meals, but they served their purpose.

They touched down without issue, the wooded landscape having cleared to a more widespread series of rolling plains the further south they traveled, still covered in patchy but sparse splotches of snow and slush.

Jaune had spent the last few hours getting used to his full mobility in Shirdal's saddle, including testing out a couple tricks he'd once seen with his family when a group of travelling hunters and performers had wandered through Domremy. He'd never seen anyone hang off the side of a saddle before, but now he had a number of thoughts of where to apply that sort of thing.

Also it looked really, really cool to swiftly and smoothly move between positions atop the saddle, so that was a plus. Spruce Willis eat your heart out.

It also meant that dropping off was remarkably easy, and whilst not something he'd exactly practiced whilst airborne, that was possibly the easiest part of all of what he could do now.

Of course, he managed to mess that up as he stumbled slightly on the ground when his feet hit dirt, and he let out a small laugh, more of an exclamation of humored shock than anything else. He obviously hadn't gotten his land-legs back yet. That was still going to take some practice.

Jaune took another glance upwards, checking the sky. That had also become sort of a habit over the past day. If it rained whilst he was above the ocean, he was certainly not going to enjoy it.

Luckily for him, the sky, whilst cloudy, wasn't stormy. If there was rain, it'd be a small sprinkling at best. He could deal with that.

Reaching into his inventory, Jaune withdrew one of the ration packs and tore it open, munching away at what was effectively a brick of nutrients. It had no discernible flavor, no identifiable ingredients or comprehensible structure, but it served its purpose.

"I really need to get actual food in my inventory, this is awful," Jaune remarked aloud, wincing. His mouth felt like he'd just spent an hour chewing on sandpaper. "And something to drink. Lessons for next time, I guess."

Shirdal cocked his head, and despite the bone-plating over the head, Jaune could still make out the expression. "Yeah, yeah, I should've thought of that before, I know."

He continued to eat the ration pack with mild distaste as he scanned the horizon. His father had always said Jaune had a knack for finding trouble, but Jaune doubted that this was what the man had meant.

A pang of guilt pushed through his thoughts. He hadn't even seen his family. They knew he was alive, but that was about the extent of information they had. His father hadn't been at Vale when he had been, so it was obvious the man was dealing with another job, as was most likely with the rest of his family, aside from Saph, of course. Saph was most likely busy with a number of other things in Argus.

He made the decision then and there to visit her when he got the chance. He'd most likely end up passing through Argus anyway.

Shirdal's head perked upwards, wings spreading, and Jaune sensed it too, something odd in the distance, growing closer with every passing second.

He turned to face where he presumed the disturbance was, one hand straying to his blade. It was the right call.

The treeline of a small copse ended roughly a hundred meters from where Jaune had stopped, and from it Jaune could see the shadowy forms of Grimm headed his direction, rippling black muscle and bony protrusions twitching and shaking as they closed in.

A cluster of Ursa, and in the lead, an Ursa Epic.

Jaune equipped Telum, slinging the quiver over his shoulder, and drew an arrow.

Sighting with the bow was easy, the attached sight marked with the zeroing indicators, and Jaune drew back, his increased STR making it nearly trivial to pull the arrow back to full draw.

He loosed the arrow, watching as it flew through the air and hit one of the Ursa in the left side of the approaching flank, landing straight in its shoulder.

The Ursa roared, but was not slowed. It didn't even seem that fazed.

"That's what I get for using a level 1 skill, I guess…" Jaune said with a sigh, collapsing Telum and stowing it on the new magplate on his back, next to the quiver.

His other hand snapped up and fired a _Mana Tether_ out towards the approaching group of Ursa, watching as each extension of the tether grabbed hold, as Jaune followed up with the second part of his combo.

Electrus formed behind the blond, crystalline structure crackling with energy waiting to be released, and release it did, firing a bolt of lightning at the nearby group.

It singed the very air as it travelled, leaving behind the smell of burnt ozone and smoking, charred Grimm corpses.

Not even the Ursa Epic was left standing.

Jaune whistled in awe. "Damn."

Electrus, crystals dimmed now that it had fired the _Stormbolt_ , knelt down and bowed, before becoming unsummoned, crystalline form crumbling into nothingness.

Jaune quickly checked his notifications. Nothing particularly interesting that he'd picked up from the little skirmish, aside from the general amount of XP and the levels to his lower-leveled skills.

Or, rather, skill, seeing as he'd really only had to do three things.

Of course, that came at the cost of however long Electrus' recharge period was.

He'd also hit Level 47, which he did appreciate, taking him up to 50 stat points, which he knew he should spend.

He had the time to consider what to spend them on, too, which was nice.

The teen turned back to Shirdal, grabbing one of the handles and hauling himself back into the saddle, hooking the leather strap to his belt as the Griffon began to lope forwards, taking off with a leap.

They flew over Sanus as Jaune deliberated, considering his options.

Fifty stat points were conceivably enough to get him two new perks, if he wanted, but that would mean investing all the points into at minimum one or two stats.

The near-even spread was another option, of course.

Jaune swore under his breath. Half the time he felt like all he ever did was choose between difficult options.

These choices tended to be the most difficult. They were, as far as he was aware, irreversible, and very important.

After what seemed like an age, Jaune made his decision.

19 into Agility, 9 into Charisma and 22 into Luck. It seemed to be a good choice, to help bring up his drastically lower stats.

 **[For achieving 50 AGI, you have unlocked a new perk!]**

 **[Speed Freak:** Thanks to your Agility, you gain an increased base speed, allowing you to both accelerate and decelerate faster, and have a higher top speed. **]**

 **[For achieving 50 LCK, you have unlocked a new perk!]**

 **[Critical Luck:** Thanks to your Luck, you now have an increased chance to critical hit. **]**

Jaune finished reading the new perks, content with his decision, and he settled forward, keeping a steady grip on one of the saddle's handles, allowing himself to relax, a free hand and a calm mind taking the opportunity that the rest of the flight would bring to create large amount of Soul Orbs.

It wasn't like there was a reason why he shouldn't.

* * *

The ocean, Jaune decided, was boring.

Water, water, more water, lots and lots of water as far as the eye could see. Not even an island to break up the monotony of the constant flow of liquid.

Just water.

Jaune rolled onto his back, resting his head against his hands. He was bored. So bored, in fact, that he found himself hoping for a Grimm attack, as it would, at the very least, give him something to do.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on perspective, no Grimm opted to take on the airborne Hunter. In fact, Jaune couldn't even remember the last Grimm he'd seen since he had set foot on land.

Perhaps it was said lack of land that might have had something to do with it, but Jaune had honestly expected more aquatic Grimm. Or any, for that matter.

And yet, so far, nothing. Not even the slightest sign of the presence of Grimm. Perhaps it had something to do with the fact that they were drawn towards negativity, and the middle of nowhere was completely devoid of that.

Well, aside from his boredom. Did boredom count as negativity? He didn't know. He felt like that was probably something he should know, to be fair. If it was, then he had definitely contributed to Domremy's Grimm numbers.

He and every other kid in the town, he supposed.

But even so, it had never been as boring as this was.

Jaune rolled over again, peering towards the horizon, hoping in vain to make out any kind of land-related things. Like birds. Jaune missed birds, how they chirped in the early hours of the morning and kept him from staying asleep for too long.

Okay, so maybe Jaune didn't miss birds all that much, but he needed something to think about.

Jaune decided to stop thinking about birds, for whatever reason he'd been thinking about them in the first place, he'd already forgotten, and instead refocus on the horizon, most particularly the small brown lump he could see to his far north.

Wait.

Jaune scrabbled up on Shirdal's back, peering at the speck in the distance, trying to make out more detail, which, inevitably, failed miserably. It was still a speck, regardless of where he was sat.

So his only course of action was, of course, to redirect from his south-west bearing to head near-northwards, at an increased speed.

At the rate he was now travelling, the speck began to grow larger and more detailed with every passing moment. It was now less of a speck and more of a blob.

Then it became a brownish boat-like blob wedged up against a rocky outcropping that protruded from the ocean, more and more stone spires shaped similarly coming into view in the distance.

Jaune was about to wonder how the boat had wound up in this seemingly unfortunate predicament when a plume of smoke and fire shot up into the air, the sound hitting him a split-second later.

Shirdal, at Jaune's urging, tucked into a dive, the rider holding tight as they went at what had to be Shirdal's top speed, practically rocketing through the air towards the wounded vessel.

Jaune still didn't know what had caused the explosion, but to be fair, there was only a few ways to find out, and getting onto the boat was certainly one of them.

Then, when Jaune was only around a hundred feet from the boat, Jaune found out exactly what it was that was causing problems.

Jaune's eyes widened in surprise as the ship's attacker burst from the depths of the ocean, a writhing sea serpent worthy of the term, the draconic Grimm letting loose a loud roar as it twisted itself to stare at the boat, crackling lightning frying the air as a glow of yellowish energy began to pool in it's gaping maw.

 **[Epic Sea Feilong]**

 **[Level 50, Legendary Grimm]**

 **[HP: 67,500/67,500]**

Jaune was quick to unfold Telum, nocking an arrow and drawing back at full strength, letting the broadhead loose towards the oceanic Grimm as Shirdal flew even faster still, covering the remaining distance in a matter of moments.

The arrow hit first, sharpened tip sparking as it impacted against scales, spiralling off into the ocean's depths without great effect.

The only thing it really managed to do was alert the Sea Feilong that he had arrived, and considering that even if it hadn't been aware before, it definitely was after Jaune hit it with a follow-up _Spinning Mana Bullet_ that punched through the toughened scales and left small holes in its wake.

It twisted to face him, electricity sparking forth from its mouth, and Jaune leapt from Shirdal to meet it head on, Crocea Mors cutting through the air as he swung the blade towards the Grimm.

It met one of the sharpened fangs of the sea-beast, chipping at the enamel-like substance that formed it and causing the Sea Feilong no small amount of pain as it thrashed away from the attack, bolt of lightning going wide and turning seawater into steam.

Jaune landed on the side of the struggling ship with a poise he hadn't expected, _Surface Walk_ allowing him to keep his balance atop the thick wooden railing that ran the rim of the craft.

The Epic Sea Feilong wasn't anywhere near dead yet, though, despite the pain it had suffered.

He was just glad that the crew had gotten all the passengers safely stowed below deck in time for this conflict, because he'd hate to have to be rescuing people at the same time as fighting this thing.

The Sea Feilong lunged for him, jaws snapping shut where he had been standing a moment before as he _Flash Stepped_ sideways along the railing, pulling the trigger on the rapidly-drawn Tranquility and unloading a blast of buckshot straight into the Grimm's fiercely-glowing eye, causing it to recoil in pain and duck under the water, out of view.

This gave Jaune plenty of time to bring forth Alcmena and Apollo, urging the two avian summons to take flight and circle, for not only the rather literal bird's-eye-view that they provided, but also as a method of effectively air-striking the monster with razor-sharp feathers.

There was a single moment, as Jaune chambered a new round in Tranquility and loaded an additional shell, where the beast was unseen, until it burst forth from the ocean once more, large, previously unseen wings allowing it to begin to compete with Jaune's three airborne-summons on their own metaphorical turf.

Even with the support of Shirdal, Alcmena and Apollo were no match for this beast without support, Jaune knew that. So when he heard the familiar sound of gunfire from behind him, permeated in staccato by cannon-fire from the ship itself, Jaune found his confidence bolstered as he joined in the onslaught of projectiles, now empty hand stretching to point at the sea serpent that was severely out of its typical element.

Jaune's _Mana Tether_ barely clipped the Sea Feilong's tail, sticking in place and gripping in a mimicry of an octopus, tethers wrapping around and causing the Sea Feilong to stop trying to electrocute Jaune's summons and instead try and tear the seemingly-sticky Mana off of it.

He followed it up with his typical follow-up, firing a _Mana Cannon_ that really should not have missed, and yet the Sea Feilong was aware enough to twist itself, contorting out of the way of the threatening ball, only to find that it wasn't just poorly-aimed ship-mounted weapons and Jaune's own projectiles it had to worry about, as a black and white figure moved with rapid speed, blade tearing through the thin membrane of one of its reddish wings.

Jaune allowed the smile that had been threatening to spill onto his face finally appear, a wide beaming grin that he couldn't help, even as he charged another _Mana Cannon_.

Blake landed deftly atop Alcmena, who easily glid over top the ship, allowing Blake to drop down and land next to Jaune, her own smile dampened by a number of things.

She decided to settle on surprise, at least for now. "Where on Remnant did you spring up from?"

Jaune fired the _Mana Cannon_ , watching in satisfaction as it impacted against the side of the still-airborne Sea Feilong, which roared in agony. "Oh, you know, you were being attacked by Grimm, and I stumbled across you. It's practically a tradition at this point."

Visible relief was next on Blake's emotional to-do list. "Last time I saw you most of us thought you were dead."

Jaune's smile dropped a little. "Yeah, well, rumours, exaggeration, other stuff that sounds important and witty. To be fair, I thought I was dead too."

Blake and Jaune's impromptu reunion had to be temporarily delayed as a blast of lightning was met with a hastily-cast _Mana Field_ , electricity sparking off and sending tingles down Jaune's arms.

"Talk later? I'd like to deal with this overgrown sea snake, preferably before it destroys the boat," Jaune remarked, gritting his teeth as he held the field up, the stream of lightning-breath unfaltering.

Blake soundlessly nodded, checking the chamber of Gambol Shroud. "I'd prefer to catch up without my life in danger, which would certainly be a fresh experience."

Jaune let out a grunt of relief as the beam of lightning ceased, and he dispelled the _Mana Field_. "It's still too fast for us to deal with, even with one-and-a-half working wings. You think you can get it again?"

Blake shrugged. "Not without some way to get up there. It's got some distance on us, it's smart. If I can get up there, though…" She let the rest of the thought trail off, but Jaune understood all the same.

"Get to the rock, and I'll launch us up," Jaune said, already moving, and Blake followed close behind, the two vaulting the opposite railing and onto the rocky outcropping that the boat was wedged up against.

A cursory examination whilst he moved gave Jaune no indication of any significant hull damage, which was a nice benefit, but that wasn't important at that moment, as he placed one hand against the ground.

"Never really tried this, so I don't know how accurate I'm gonna be," he admitted, steadying himself. "Ready?"

Blake nodded, bracing herself for the incoming momentum.

Jaune activated _Terrakinesis_ , urging the stone beneath him to shift, and shift it did, at a speed that was honestly rather frightening for the level the skill was at, launching him and his teammate high into the air, clearing the altitude that the Sea Feilong was hovering at, its piercing red eyes, one injured, the other untouched, watching the two.

Jaune took Blake's outstretched hand and began to spin, twisting faster and faster until he flung her like a bola towards the Sea Feilong, the blades of Gambol Shroud effectively shredding through red membrane and causing the sea serpent to writhe in agony once more as Jaune readied himself.

It had been some time since Jaune had pulled this off, but he allowed himself to grimace as he pooled Mana into his feet.

The Sea Feilong, already gravely wounded and severely annoyed, suddenly found itself in even more pain as Jaune hit it square in the back with a _Mana Impact_ , emerging from the underside with a burst of black ichor.

He landed in the ocean with a massive splash, and whilst Blake had been lucky enough to snag a ride from Alcmena, Jaune had been moving far too fast for any of his summons to even consider that an option, and Jaune didn't disagree.

He resurfaced quickly, the pull of displaced water trying to keep him down, but his Aura-augmented muscles easily ignoring that as his outstretched hand snagged one of Apollo's talons, scooping him up and out of the salt water.

Apollo deposited the soggy Jaune Arc onto the deck of the boat, to the clapping and cheering of the crew, Blake taking a much drier drop from Alcmena's talon onto the deck to stand next to her team leader, the unexpected attention catching her off-guard.

Jaune performed a water-laden bow in good humor, before giving his head a quick shake to free it of most of the water that clung to the strands of blond, and thoroughly distracting Blake as she nearly found herself hissing at him.

Clamping down on that instinct, especially in the presence of so many people, she decided to instead glare at him, that damned mischievous grin of his reminding her that all blond-haired people were not to be trusted.

Gods, she had a penchant for befriending trouble-making blonds, didn't she?

"Hunters! Thanks for the assistance! We deeply appreciate it, especially you, lad. Where'd you even come from?"

The captain, an older man with a bushy white beard, took Jaune's hand in his own, giving it a vigorous shake.

Jaune let out a laugh. "Coincidence. I was just flying by, spotted the boat on the horizon."

"Aye? Well, thank the Gods you decided to investigate. I dunno if we'd have made it out so easily without your help, and yours, Huntress."

"You don't mind me staying aboard until you reach Menagerie, do you? I've had a long trip out, and I haven't slept in a bed for a couple days at least," Jaune asked, and the captain quickly nodded an affirmative.

"Course, lad. You've definitely earned it. I don't know if we have any empty cabins, though, but-"

Blake interrupted the captain. "My cabin has two beds, and my team leader is more than used to sharing. We'll be fine, thank you Captain."

The captain nodded once more before turning back to his crew. "Alright, show's over! Let's get back on course!"

"Way to specify 'team leader' there, Blake," Jaune joked.

Blake's dead stare should have terrified him, but he'd always known he had more courage than sense. Even still, Jaune sighed. "Yeah, we really need to catch up."

* * *

 **Jaune's back alongside Blake, hooray! I can write dialogue without it being one-sided again! Honestly a relief. I've never really gotten the hang of character thoughts as a direct point. If that wasn't already blatantly obvious. Just one more thing to add to my list of things to improve.**

 **Anyway, I'm just gonna dive right into reviews for this, uh, past two weeks or so. Sorry again.**

 **Kazotskye: In a sense, Jaune already has a few debuff-like skills, though I imagine for any more I'll have to take some serious consideration as to how they work. The problem I can see with certain methods of implementing debuffs is that they might just become so significantly powerful that there isn't even a negative to them, if that makes sense. For the sake of balance I feel like using something should come with a drawback, be that the cost, an additional effect, or even the chance for something to backfire, which should give a few hints to what I'm testing out at the moment.**

 **Nagisa Tr: Honestly, this is a good idea for a story in its own right, though the idea that the more skulls the mask has the higher chance for corruption to take effect is a good one, and one I will most likely be implementing, once I've ironed out all the kinks, so to speak.**

 **jedimasterb10: Damn it now I need to work out special arrows, like smoke and incendiary. Also, considering what this flu has done to my throat, I currently sound like Batman on an off-day.**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: Elementals will evolve, but on a similarly-almost-linear path much like Bound Souls. I had originally had it that the Elementals would require a Grade V Dust Crystal of the same type in order to move up in the evolutionary tiers (from first to second), but I've just recently changed that, as the drop chance for a Grade V Crystal was far too large for how many would inevitably be needed. Now an item that can be crafted is required, and whilst the ingredients are significantly cheaper, it does require Jaune to hit a minimum of 20 Crafting. Basically, how a Bound Soul goes from Minor to Greater, the Elemental will go from Shard to Gem. I'll also make a quick confession; I still haven't planned most of the skulls for the Abominae Mask, but I do have some ideas. The Slowfall/Featherfall is a good idea, though. The Shai-Hulud Bound Soul will come about reasonably soon, once Jaune finds some time to himself somewhere a Shai-Hulud would be comfortable. Weapons can be improved, Dust will have a few uses, though not quite how you are imagining, Jaune will be giving gear to allies if he believes they would be more suited to using it than he, and Neo has already been teased a couple times as to how she's going to be involved. Of course, I'll also have to tune in to Volume 7 to figure out how that may change what I have planned, but who knows. I could just ignore the canon entirely.**

 **Guest: That's a whole lot of stuff that I'm actually going to not talk about, because some of it is pretty neat, and that considering I don't have half of that stuff in the spreadsheet I won't be able to comment on whether or not it will appear, but there is every chance that some of it will. I can confirm that Grimm Drops will have a few uses outside of just selling them, though most of the drops currently only serve that purpose. Gear for summons, though, well... great minds think alike.**

 **Sm0keyPanda: I hope by now you've seen Parabellum. I have to rewatch that another time, it's so god-damn satisfying. As for weapon diversity, I try to make sure that there aren't any duplicate weapon-types in the PACK list. Maybe similar ones, of course.**

 **sairen629: Well, I went for it, it's up on my page if you haven't already seen it. I'm hoping to have another chapter out pretty soon for that. As for Jaune trying to make a party, there's been nothing that would indicate that it is in fact possible, and I've also decided that the entire party-system is flawed in the majority of things it shows up in, and if it does appear, it won't be as it is portrayed typically.**

 **Tsu no mumei: I actually didn't know what a Macuahuitl was until you mentioned it, so cheers, that adds another to my potential weapons in the spreadsheet, maybe for Jaune, maybe for a different character. I'll have to see. The tattoo idea is really dope, because I'm a sucker for cool tattoos, especially ones with magical powers. In honor of the first chapter of Unending Horizon maybe I'll end up giving Ren a Taijitu tattoo laced with Dust. Despite what the wiki says, I've decided on 19 Elemental Dust variants, not including Inert Dust, and whilst Plant Dust isn't one of them, I'd say that and Stone Dust would and could probably be rolled into Earth Dust. If you're a fan of gamer-like stories involving magical tattoos, go check out 'Skyclad' on RoyalRoad. It's really, really good.**

 **hirshja: He will, don't worry. Just gotta find somewhere comfortable to do so. Not exactly something he wants to do on the deck of a ship. That'd cause one hell of a commotion.**

 **Swiftcaliston: Wyvern's not dead. Ruh-roh.**

 **typhonyx: You sure voice a hell of a lot of my deepest thoughts for someone who's never met me in person :P. You are, as usual, absolutely right. I'm planning on making the reunions work pretty much similar to what you're suggesting, with Jaune receiving plenty of reactions to his improvements. With Blake it's a little different, because from her perspective Jaune hasn't changed all that much, aside from not being a statue, but with the rest of his team, well, I won't say anything yet. Just know that I've kept this nugget of advice in my head the entire time I've been writing since I read it earlier this month. As for Jaune's favor to Cinder, I have a plan for that. It's not so cut-and-dry, and Jaune does have a choice whether or not he wants to undergo that favor, but it's the consequences that I think are more important than the decision itself. Sure, Jaune can just say no, because she's a villain and technically she doesn't have any leverage, but that's what we think now. It may be different in the future, and I have a way to make it a little more desperate. Don't worry, I love all the feedback I get from people, be it positive or negative, so long as it's at least somewhat constructive. This is the sort of stuff I love to read, because despite the fact that you seem to think it's negative, it's actually a great help in directing my usually-wandering mind towards what I need to have written.**

 **razmire: I appreciate your faith in my writing. Unending Horizon is up on my page if you want to check it out! I have a long-term plan for skulls that I'm still working on, but it'll be good once it comes up in-story, so hopefully that'll serve as reason enough for Jaune to not use the Shai-Hulud Skull just yet. Shai-Hulud Summon is coming soon!**

 **RegaliaOfRock: If I remember correctly, Ruby gives a pretty good explanation as to why. I could be wrong, though, it's been a long time since I wrote that chapter.**

 **LandWhale172: I'm sort-of hoping to bring bar brawl Jaune up every so often. Even the most purehearted of teenagers is still a teenager, and there's only so much maturity someone can handle before you have to crack some skulls. Good name, by the way.**

 **Fyr RedNight: When he eventually meets back up with Ruby I imagine he's going to effectively be placed aside in favor of Ruby just gushing over his rapidly-acquired armory. Unending Horizon's first chapter is up on my page if you want to check it out, if you haven't already!**

 **armentho: Coincidentally, I've already planned a Seer summon, with a pretty dope name and perk, if I do say so myself. A few Lord of the Rings fans will be pleased, at the very least. Consider that my teaser trailer for it.**

 **AscendedHumanity: For the sake of clarification, the Foundation Seed and the Divinity Seed are used as catalysts for Elemental Evolution.**

 **IHateGenericCereal: No worries, always glad to have you, regardless of whether or not you leave a review. From what I've played in H3VR, MGs are definitely some of the most fun weapons just to reload, and everybody recognizes the Deagle. I've actually had to stop using that in Siege because I get players pissed off whenever I use it. Hand Cannons are always a blast, pun intended. I guess we'll see exactly how good/bad Jaune's new hair is this weekend, with the Volume 7 release. I'd better go make sure I have First, actually.**

 **SneakyDevil: The irony of your review promptly followed by my disappearance for possibly the longest time ever writing Systema, not including the deliberate weeks I took off as a break. Penny's Soul Orb will have a use, though not as you are suggesting, and Pyrrha's very-much still alive, just comatose somewhere in Mistral.**

 **babiloniaolimpo: I, uh, don't speak Spanish. I'd appreciate if you'd quickly run your reviews through Google Translate before you post them up, for everyone's sake. There isn't much point in me addressing your points here, either, considering the chapters you've reviewed on.**

 **Wow, that was a lot. It's like checking your email after a month of not opening it. Not to say that I don't check reviews multiple times a day, I love reading what you all have to say. Thanks all!**

 **I have a Pa Treon, if you want to come support me, it has all sorts of benefits!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	62. The Wrong Kind Of Attention

**Well, third time's the charm. Originally started editing and responding at 3:30am, then again at 4am as Chrome decided to dead-page me, and then now, 4:30am, thanks to a complete computer crash. Hopefully it goes better this time around.**

 **Quickly, just a rule that I'm upholding, much the same as the RWBY subreddit, no spoilers of anything from episodes of Volume 7 that haven't been aired to the free public. If you're really, really anxious to talk about it with someone, either head over to the RWBY subreddit, or feel free to send me a PM, I'm pretty much always online.**

 **Thanks to my Patrons; Maxstroid, Justas Kondrusevicius and Fittzym for supporting me this month! I really appreciate you guys!**

* * *

"You've really let this video game thing go to your head," Blake said with a frown that was betrayed by her sly smirk. "I'm not some companion quest to complete to get me back to your side."

Jaune rolled his eyes. "Yeah, that's what I said, and not 'I'm here to help you with whatever it is you have to deal with in Menagerie before we go to Atlas and rescue your partner, our friend, Weiss Schnee from her abusive father, particularly before she does something catastrophically stupid'."

"I'm not here to 'deal with' anything, Jaune. I'm going home to see my mother and father."

Jaune nodded. "And I'd love to meet them. As your team leader, I feel like it's sort of my prerogative. Besides, you met my parents, only fair you return the favor."

There was a beat of silence, before Jaune continued. "Also you were the only one of AWBN that I didn't know the exact location of, so I was worried. Would it have killed you to have left like a note, or even just told someone where you were headed?"

Blake at least had the decency to look ashamed. "I… I panicked. I thought you were dead, and with Pyrrha having been retrieved by her family, and Weiss in the same boat, I ran. Again."

Jaune sighed. "I thought we worked on that, Blake. At least you didn't run headlong towards the enemy this time."

Blake opened her mouth to refute that point, but promptly shut it.

"So, what next? We go see your family, have a great time because I assume your family are amazing, and then what? Are you just going to be satisfied with a visit? Or are we going to be declaring war on the entire White Fang while we're there?"

Blake frowned. "I didn't think I'd have to, seeing as what they did at Beacon."

Jaune nodded. "True. Unless the news hasn't spread to Menagerie yet, or it's being suppressed. Which would definitely not come as a surprise, seeing as what we've had to go up against before. You said the cell you belonged to before you left was the Vale branch, right?"

Blake stood, frown still etched into her face. "Yeah. Whether or not that is actually true is a little up in the air. I don't know if Adam was lying to me, or for how long. It could've been a severely violent splinter group lead by Adam, or it could've been sanctioned by the head of the White Fang, Sienna Khan."

"Which brings me to my next point," Jaune began. "Exactly how welcoming is Menagerie to humans? Cause, uh," he gestured to himself. "Not exactly incognito."

Blake shrugged. "I don't know. It's been a while since I've been back. I imagine no one will actively attack you, but some may try to provoke you. It's best to just ignore it. At the very least my family won't care. Mom and Dad have always been welcoming of anyone, as long as they acted with respect for everyone."

"My favorite pastime, being provoked. I've really missed it."

This time it was Blake's turn to roll her eyes. "Pretty sure no one ever provoked you in Beacon."

"Besides Cardin."

Blake shrugged again. "And he learned his lesson pretty quickly."

"Yeah, life-threatening danger will do that to you."

Blake cocked an eyebrow. "Learned that from experience?"

Jaune let out a laugh. "Let's just say I've had more than my fair share of mishaps, even before I got my semblance. My life is just one huge cavalcade of coincidences and trouble."

Blake shook her head. "That comes as absolutely no surprise."

Another laugh escaped Jaune's lips, before he grew more serious. "Are we going to have to deal with the White Fang while we're here, Blake? That seems like a fight we can't win, at least, not yet. Maybe in a couple years, but we've always bitten off more than we can chew."

Blake shook her head. "It's not why I came here. If something important needs to be dealt with, then I think we'll be dealing with it, but only if we have to. I'd rather not start a fight we definitely can't win. I'd rather deal with the White Fang on our terms, not theirs."

Jaune accepted the answer with a grateful nod. "Well, as fun as catching up has been, and it has, don't get me wrong, but I really, really need to sleep. It's been a long few days."

Blake found herself in complete agreement. "There's something about killing a giant sea serpent that really takes it out of you."

Jaune was already unconscious.

* * *

Jaune had awoken early, ascending from below deck to stand on the starboard side of the ship, watching the water wash past as the boat cruised along, close to its destination.

He was alone, up top, too early for anyone to be taking the time to appreciate the view, the chill wind that blew past affecting all but himself, thanks in part to his resistance to cold.

It was the perfect time to go over the previous afternoon's efforts, in fact, and the results of which were still sitting in the minimized notification window that he brought up with a practised motion.

He'd gotten so used to it, now, that it didn't even register as a strange thing to do anymore.

 **[Event Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You've gained 7,000,350 XP!]**

 **[You've leveled up 5 times! You are now Level 52! You've gained 25 Stat Points!]**

 **[Multiple Skills have leveled up! A skill has an upgrade awaiting choice!]**

 **[You collected 28,600 Lien, 25 Inert Dust, 3 Epic Sea Feilong Gills and 3 Grade VI Ice Dust Crystals!]**

Jaune stared bug-eyed at the notification. "Event Encounter? Seven million XP!? What the-"

He looked left and right, making sure that he was alone and out of earshot. Thankfully, he still was.

Jaune navigated to his skills list, and noticed the flashing icon of _Aura Control_. He quickly tapped it, watching as a menu he'd only ever been in once floated up into view, three selections available to him.

Jaune quickly scanned through the options listed beneath the previously-selected _Aura Suppression_ perk that he'd acquired a long time ago now.

"Vampiric Aura, Auric Barrier or Imbued Aura?" Jaune asked himself, raising an eyebrow. "Damn it, it's always difficult choices."

Jaune gave them each a precursory tap, reading the descriptions. ' _Vampiric Aura; absorb and convert a small amount of damage taken into AP. Auric Barrier; release a pulse of Aura when struck that knocks opponents back. Imbued Aura; gain +12.5% resistance to an element, can change element resistance after 24 hours.'_

Jaune had no idea what to pick, the story of his life these days. He'd need to give it some thought… or, considering how good elemental resistance could possibly be, he might just take Imbued Aura. It would be nice to be even more resistant to cold, or even better, considering what Jaune may have to do in the future, becoming somewhat fireproof would definitely be nice.

Jaune tapped on Imbued Aura, quickly hitting confirm before he could change his mind.

The sudden influx of energy that swirled around him would have drawn a lot of attention had anyone been looking his way. Jaune took a step back as his Aura glowed brightly, swirling through many different tints, always white tinged with another color, from red to blue to green.

If he was being honest, he looked like a winter solstice lightshow.

Once it had faded, Jaune could feel a lingering energy when he reached out with _Aura Control_ , his hands touching air and yet still able to feel that tingling, somewhat different than the typical tingle he got from his Aura. Simply as a test, Jaune made a choice, and his Aura tingled again, this time leaving goosebumps along skin as his hair stood on end, the slightest crackle of electricity sounding in his ears.

Accidentally running across the boat had definitely been one of the best coincidences he'd experienced as of late. Gods, he had another twenty-five stat points to spend, too! At this rate he was just going to have to start cycling through stats, rotating between each at every level. It wasn't the worst idea, of course. Or he could just put all twenty-five into one particular stat and get a new perk. Not that he needed a new perk at the moment, considering the onslaught of information he'd already been near-overwhelmed by.

Jaune brought up his stats, swallowed his indecision, and made his choice. Jaune put all twenty-five points into Charisma. He knew Menagerie weren't going to be entirely accepting of him, probably for good reason at first, and talking his way out of unfortunate situations was going to be of penultimate importance.

 **[For achieving 50 CHA, you have unlocked a new perk!]**

 **[Ladykiller:** Thanks to your Charisma, you now have increased CHA success with those of the opposite gender. **]**

Jaune swore loudly.

* * *

"Jaune, what could possibly be so bad that you had to wake me up?" Blake asked, rubbing an eye with the back of her hand. "It's not more Grimm, is it?"

Jaune shook his head. "No, no, it's… how do I put this."

"Couldn't you have figured out what you wanted to tell me before you woke me?"

Jaune let out a sigh and bit the bullet. "Me talking to you doesn't feel any different than normal, does it?"

Blake quirked an eyebrow. "Not that I notice… why would it?"

Jaune answered as succinctly as he possibly could. "I just unlocked a perk that increases all speech successes with females."

Blake opened her mouth and promptly shut it, before sighing very loudly. "Why am I stuck with you."

Jaune slumped onto his own bed, running a hand through his hair. "It's not like I meant for it to happen! I just put twenty-five points into charisma and it gave it to me."

Blake relented. "To be honest, it really isn't that big a deal. It's only an increase, and what you do with it is still entirely up to you."

That perked Jaune up a little, but the worry was still clear as day on his face. "What if I accidentally convince someone to do something that gets them hurt, or killed?"

"Then don't?" Blake suggested with a shrug. "It's not like you've suddenly gained the ability to control minds."

Jaune's laugh was devoid of humor.

"Jaune, you can't control minds, right?"

Jaune waved his hand in a so-so motion in the air. "Technically?"

Blake backed up a step.

"It's not-so-much mind control as it is the ability to influence someone to feel fear, so far."

Blake backed up another step. "That's… really dangerous. The amount of Grimm that could attract alone…"

Jaune nodded diminutively. "I know. It's not something I like to use. In fact, I've only used it once, and it had a lot more of an effect than I'd expected."

Both found the conversation suddenly halted as the boat was rocked from side to side, both of the Hunters managing to keep their balance without fault as the surface beneath their feet shifted.

They shared a quick glance before stepping out of the room, headed down the hall and towards the top deck.

For once, it was a pleasant surprise, instead of some awful situation to deal with. Something both Blake and Jaune were unfamiliar with.

The captain stepped down from the main cabin, a wide grin on his face as he noticed the two Hunters. "Welcome to Menagerie, and thanks again for getting us here! We'd have been Grimm chow for sure without you two!"

His reiterated gratitude was quickly accepted with heartfelt smiles and good faith as Jaune and Blake downplayed their involvement, both somehow trying to out-humble each other.

The captain continued unabated. "We'll be docking real soon, so you'd better go grab your stuff from your cabin."

Blake ducked back below deck to do just that, but Jaune stepped close to the edge of the deck, taking the time to peer at the island that was the majority of the horizon ahead of him, marvelling at the pristine white-sanded beaches, the sprawling structures of wooden buildings effectively stacked together haphazardly, the beautiful, lush palm trees, and the distant dusty mountains that bordered the cityscape.

It was beautiful, and seeing as Jaune had never really been to many places so exotic, this was definitely a first.

Even if the majority of the population held a grudge against his species, for good reason. Jaune was going to have to be on his best behaviour, that much was certain. At least Blake was around to at least help smooth potential issues over. If he was alone he doubted it would go quite as well as he was hoping it would.

Not that anything involving him ever went smoothly.

Jaune let out another sigh. His life was a series of complicated tribulations and magical powers. What a mix. At least it was interesting. Never a dull day, and all that.

The boat cruised up to the dock and the deckhands were quick to throw ropes to the dockworkers, and Jaune watched as the well-practised workers roped the boat in place as the deckhands dropped anchor.

The boarding plank was less of a plank and more of an entire platform as it bridged across to the immense jetty, wooden planks old and bleached by constant sunlight and seawater, yet still as solid as ever, especially considering the constant traffic they obviously experienced.

Jaune wasn't first off the boat, his plan being to wait for Blake to resurface, but he did watch as the rest of the passengers disembarked, various animalistic appendages indicating something that Jaune hadn't previously noticed, but it really should have been pretty obvious.

Jaune was the only human in a very, very large area. He definitely wasn't the first human to visit Menagerie, but in terms of how common it was, there was no way that number was in the triple digits. Potentially it wasn't even in the double digits, even despite how much traffic the island kingdom received.

"You ready?"

Blake's question startled him out of his reverie, and he spun quickly, hand twitching towards Crocea Mors.

Her hand, the one that wasn't holding a travel bag, came up placatingly. "Sorry, didn't mean to scare you."

Jaune huffed slightly. "You didn't scare me, just… startled me, that's all."

Blake quirked an eyebrow in a very Blake-like fashion. "Right. Are you ready, or would you like to stand on the boat some more?"

Jaune gestured forwards. "Lead the way, I'm the filthy human out of his depth. Not like I really know where to go anyway."

Blake rolled her eyes. "Oh, you'll fit right in."

Jaune could practically see the sarcasm it was so thick.

* * *

If Jaune wasn't already used to having a lot of eyes watching his every move, this was definitely a good crash course.

Every movement, every word from his lips, every glance, it was observed by a significant amount of faunus that were keeping very, very close eyes on him.

And the worst part was the constant reminder that many faunus experienced this kind of thing on the regular outside of Menagerie. If he had to deal with this sort of thing every single day of his waking life he'd definitely snapped by now.

And with the power he had at his fingertips, that would definitely be a concern for the world at large.

Or, well, at least a lot of concern for people who couldn't fight back. Not so much for a team of official Hunters. At his current level, at least…

Why was he considering how much of a fight he could put up against a team of official Hunters, he had no idea. Probably because it was easier to retract his thoughts inwards instead of absorbing the constant stares and having to react.

"I don't know how you put up with this sort of thing, Blake…" Jaune muttered, his teammate giving him a nod of understanding.

"I don't. It's why I joined the White Fang, and why I wore a bow for so long. When it comes to stares like this, I struggle to keep my temper in check."

"I guess. I don't think anybody would be safe if Yang was a faunus, though. Can you imagine the collateral damage?"

Despite the situation, Blake laughed. "Or Nora. Then again, Nora's got a history of collateral damage regardless."

That was a point Jaune was more than happy to concede. Instead, he moved to a different topic.

"Speaking of the bow, I'm glad you've taken it off. Is that going to be a permanent feature?"

He watched as Blake's cat-ears twitched slightly as they were mentioned. "I… I think so. I had a whole dramatic thing where I let the bow go overboard, it was really nice. Would've been a great moment if we hadn't been attacked by a Sea Feilong a few moments later."

Jaune's eyes lit up. "Your bow can summon Grimm?!"

Blake punched him in the arm as he laughed.

Once he'd finished laughing at his admittedly-dumb joke, he decided he'd ask another question, one less stupid this time. "So, which place is your parent's? We've been walking for a little bit, and as much as I'm enjoying being glared at along this magnificent thoroughfare, we should probably hurry it up a little. I think I'm a visual obstruction for a lot of these people."

Blake pointed down the thoroughfare, and Jaune followed the direction her hand pointed. "So, either your parents own a mansion, or it's behind the mansion."

"The first one."

"Right. I'm the least important member of AWBN, I keep forgetting."

Blake gave Jaune a glare that he raised an eyebrow to. "You're going to have to glare harder, Blake, I'm already immune to regular glares from constant exposure."

"Sorry. I'm just a little… worried. I haven't really spoken to my parents in…" Blake trailed off, frowning as she counted in her head. "Wow, it's been a long time."

"I thought you were going to call them back in Beacon?" Jaune asked, casting his mind back.

"I was going to, but…"

"Blake, please tell me your default reaction to problems isn't to run away from them."

Her reaction was very vocal. "I'm working on it, okay?!"

"Easy, Blake. If you start causing a scene it'll make me look like I started it."

Blake sighed. "Technically, you did."

"As your team leader I'm allowed to reprimand you as I see fit."

"Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely, huh?"

"I will sick Cadejo on you if you aren't careful."

If Jaune was being honest, he'd missed this back-and-forth. Without Weiss it lacked a certain bite, and without Pyrrha it lacked a mediator, but it was a start. A nice reminder, at the least.

The two fell into a comfortable silence as they walked, even despite the stares Jaune was getting. It bothered him, but no one had tried to kill him, so that was a plus. Especially considering his past few months. It was honestly a rarity to spend a day where someone didn't try to kill him.

"Hey! Human scum!"

Spoke too soon.

"Yeah, what's up?" Jaune replied, in an attempt to disarm the situation, much to Blake's surprise.

"You're scum!"

Jaune nodded in response to the dog faunus' insult. "Thanks, I'll keep that in mind for the future."

He went to turn back and continue walking, but the dog faunus wasn't done just yet. "You bein' sarcastic?"

It was too much for Jaune to resist. "No, why do you ask?"

The sarcasm was thicker than the amount of syrup Nora usually had on her pancakes.

"You are bein' sarcastic!"

Jaune shook his head. "No, sorry, I don't know what sarcasm is."

Despite the fact that Blake very much disapproved of Jaune's mishandling of the situation, she found herself quickly having to stifle a laugh at Jaune's deadpan delivery.

The dog faunus spat on the ground in front of Jaune, having closed the distance. "What's it like to have the boot on the other foot, huh? Coming here to laugh at the animals, huh?"

"Yeah, that's what I've been doing. Not saving lives, killing Grimm and otherwise minding my own business. I'm so glad you've shown me the error of my ways."

Blake decided to step in before things got even more out of hand, or Jaune made another comment that would land him in ever more hot water. "C'mon, Jaune, let's keep going. We've still got a bit of a hike."

Jaune nodded, silently stepping away from the dog faunus.

"Yeah, that's right, human scum. Follow the race traitor."

Jaune instantly placed a hand on Blake's shoulder and steered her forwards. "Don't do it, Blake, no matter how much he deserves it. I really don't want you getting in trouble."

He could feel how tense Blake was underneath his hand. Every muscle was coiled, ready to spring, and it took her a few seconds and some deep breaths before she relaxed.

"We both know that's not true, Blake. Ignore him, I don't think he's the most educated of individuals."

"Education isn't exactly easy to come by out in Menagerie. Systematic oppression has an impact on that," Blake muttered.

Jaune nodded. "The people out here seem happy enough, though. When they aren't staring at me or hiding their children like I'm some kind of bogeyman here to kidnap Faunus children."

"Wouldn't be the first time."

Jaune's next witticism was dropped. "Oh."

"Yeah."

They kept moving, silent, until they were once again stopped, a few minutes later.

"Human. You're coming with us."

Jaune spun, as did Blake, and the surprise was as sudden as it was concerning.

Jaune and Blake were staring down a squad of White Fang soldiers, armed and armored with significantly more intricate armor and powerful weapons, standing with stances that belied proper training.

Jaune was willing to negotiate, but that went out the window the moment Blake drew her weapon and aimed the barrel at the White Fang soldier that had spoken.

The reaction was instant, all the held weapons going from ready to pointed straight at the two of them, glares underneath masks going from disgust to pure concentration.

Jaune lifted one hand to placate the White Fang, the other he placed atop Gambol Shroud, lowering the weapon. "Easy, everyone. Let's talk this through…"

One of the White Fang clicked the safety off their rifle and Blake's weapon went straight back up, finding a target amidst the squad.

Jaune sighed. "Please don't do this. I haven't done anything hostile, aggressive or even racist. I'm just on my way to visit my teammate's family, okay?"

The one that had initially spoken gave him no ground to negotiate. "You will be coming with us, willingly or subdued."

Blake spoke up this time. "I'm not letting him go with a bunch of murderers!"

At least Blake felt strongly about her stance on the White Fang. That was a plus, he supposed. "Look, can't you see I've done nothing wrong? If I'd done something I'd understand, but…"

One of the soldiers pulled the trigger, and the bullet hit Jaune square between the eyes, Aura sparking as the metal warped and flattened, dropping to the ground as Jaune's eyes met the eyes of the bear faunus that had fired.

In a single moment Jaune drew his sword and activated _Intimidating Presence_. "I'll let that slide, just this once, if you back off."

The point of Crocea Mors hovered unwavering in the air, held firm in his steady grip.

"What in the God's names is going on here!"

The shout was loud, booming across the terrified thoroughfare, startling many of the White Fang soldiers. Thankfully not enough for another to squeeze the trigger, that had been pretty painful, if Jaune was being honest.

"Chieftain, sir, our apologies! We're under orders to arrest this human scum!"

Jaune watched as Blake subtly slid behind him, trying to hide behind his body as the Chieftain of Menagerie pushed through the nervous White Fang.

Jaune almost tried to hide behind Blake for a second, which, whilst comedic, would definitely not have been a good choice. The Chieftain was an imposing figure, standing even taller than Jaune, which was impressive in its own right, but combined with the fact that he was about as broad as a barn, entirely muscle, and was glaring directly at Jaune with an intensity that greatly exceeded Jaune's _Intimidating Presence_ , which he quickly dismissed, the Chieftain was terrifying.

A single second passed before a memory struck Jaune in the forefront of his mind like the bullet from a few moments ago.

That thought was immediately confirmed by Blake, who decided to bite the bullet and stop hiding behind her team leader. "Hey, Dad."

* * *

 **I'm gonna make sure to save this time.**

 **Onto reviews!**

 **Fyr RedNight: Let's be honest, Summoning is one of the coolest things. It's also probably the biggest distinction technical-wise Systema has in comparison to a lot of other gamer-fics. That and this isn't harem or OC. Not that I'm dismissing them, of course.**

 **armentho: Jaune has access to elemental effects on his spells through his Elemental Infusion skill, he just doesn't use it all that often. He really should, and by 'he really should' I mean I should really remember to use it more often. I've invested in some sticky-notes for just such an occasion.**

 **Nagisa Tr: Well, I'd consider this a pretty beneficial upgrade to Telum, wouldn't you?**

 **Guest: That was actually going to be a summon perk for a while, before I scrapped it. There's not all that much point to it other than making Jaune into SpiderJaune, and as cool as a fic like that would be, there's not all that much space for it in Systema. That's a whole other ballgame. It might pop up in Unending Horizon, though.**

 **Sperance: I'm going to try really hard to get the Menagerie Arc right, and do it justice. Original plot progression is a flaw of mine, and something I've been working on slowly but steadily, but I hope I can do it well. And let's be honest, as much as I appreciate a good Knightshade, or even group pairings, or hell, even harems, I can't write romance very well yet. At least with Lancaster I've got two similarly-minded characters with easily-written dialogue and fluffy interaction. Though I think I've accidentally proven that I might be a half-decent Knightshade or White Knight writer. That was unintentional.**

 **Swiftcaliston: Nope, Sun left with his team before Blake left Patch.**

 **Jowasut: Until such a time I can afford to commission an artist to draw a cover for Systema, it'll just have to stay. And what can I say, I love the image, it comes across like a bad shitpost.**

 **Guest: I did have a response written to this, TWICE, but seeing as my computer hates me with a burning passion, I'll give you a quick summary. I can't change your mind, doubt anyone could, to be honest, but know that nothing I receive monetary compensation for is against copyright law as I don't lock content behind a paywall. Go complain to people who do lock fanfiction behind paywalls.**

 **Exiled Soul Nomad: He does have Aura Transfusion, but not a direct-touch heal ability to regenerate other's HP. He can make Potions of Healing though.**

 **Tsu no mumei: Hey, thanks for the well wishes! Jaune'll be working on summons as soon as he has some room to breathe and some space to work with, and considering your Cloud/Lava Feilong suggestions, I'm absolutely making some Feilong variants. Not individual summons, of course, or even individual Grimm, I'm already up to 34 total Bound Souls, but more like rare enemy variants for a super-secret project I'm working on for the future of the Menagerie Arc and onwards. The spreadsheet has a skill similar to what you're suggesting, it's been in there since before 2019, but it just hasn't come up yet. It will eventually, though, once Jaune meets its requirements.**

 **Sm0keyPanda: I understand life being busy, hope you get some time to relax soon! Perhaps not the argument you expected, but a conversation nonetheless!**

 **paradox0.5white: Definitely not a character I'm familiar with, and looking them up lead me on a wild ride. I think I'm more confused than when I started, and that's saying something. Wearing pets, though, whilst I'm not familiar with the context, I can imagine is something like a kind of fusion? That seems pretty anime-esq. Don't think it'll happen in Systema, unfortunately. Unless something really strikes me.**

 **razmire: I might not have been as clear as I could have been, my bad. Jaune quite literally plummeted through it's midsection and practically cut the thing in half. It's dead as Canon-Pyrrha (not sorry).**

 **TheB: He's gotta do something to counteract his usual luck, that's for sure.**

 **jedimasterb10: Well, it used to be called the asphyxiating bolt, until Goyo was released, then they changed the name to more suit the concept. Thanks for the well wishes, and I'm pretty sure that Mark Twain is only ever misquoted. I can't remember the initial quote, but I think the well-known one is a misquote too. Don't quote me on that. (Also not sorry).**

 **SeanHicks4: I've always been a fan of Greek Fire (Pyrrha/Yang), and the two are remarkably similar in canon, at least on the field. It's kind of like 'opposite's attract', except they share a similarity that brings them together. Which, now that I think about it, is pretty much what 'opposite's attract' is anyway.**

 **PsychoStorys: No worries, I'm still going strong! Systema's too big now, I couldn't stop even if I wanted to. And, thankfully, I don't!**

 **tjbruiser99: Is that why she ran in the show? Huh, I could've sworn it was something else. Anyways, Adam hurt her, but not Yang, so she doesn't have the same concept, or at least it isn't so intense. Plus I'm pretty sure of all the people Blake would be worried about getting hurt Jaune isn't anywhere near the top of the list, not only because she thought he was dead, but also because he can literally regenerate from wounds.**

 **IHateGenericCereal: I won't spoil anything, and I'm glad you didn't either, but man oh man, that was an episode. I'm a little disappointed in a couple things story-wise, simply because I have a couple hang-ups with the big revelation, but otherwise it's an absolutely solid start to a volume. Jaune's hair is going to be even more divisive than before, I think, but we'll just have to wait and see.**

 **And that does it for the third time editing and responding! Love this hunk of junk, it's flawless and definitely not a computer assembled from many, many salvaged, restored and loaned parts, and it definitely doesn't only work when it's placed on it's side so the GPU doesn't slip out of the PCI slot. Not at all.**

 **Thanks for stopping by, and if you feel like supporting my writing process, you can stop by my Pa Treon, if you feel so inclined. I reiterate, not required in the slightest.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	63. Familial Mercy II: Revelations

**For once I'm actually getting a chapter out on time. That's a rarity.**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid, Justas Kondrusevicius and Fittzym for supporting me this month! I really appreciate it!**

* * *

Chieftain Ghira Belladonna shared a few similarities with his daughter. Hair color, eye color, intimidating glare, and a thirst for righteous equality.

Well, Jaune was sure of three of those four things. He was yet to witness the fourth, but man was he hoping it was the case. If it wasn't, he might be in a hefty bit of trouble.

Of course, whilst his expression, intimidating as it was, melted to an expression of pure surprise the moment he saw Blake, there was definitely the unspoken question of who he was.

Also the question of why he was being arrested, though that could effectively be boiled down to his race.

"Chieftain, sir?" One of the soldiers asked, and the hulking man blinked back shock, still recovering.

"Blake? What are you-"

Blake shook her head. "Dad, now's really not the time."

Ghira choked back his surprise and rounded on the soldiers. "What are you doing? Opening fire like that?!"

His voice boomed, and the White Fang soldiers were quick to back up, one of them shoving the offending faunus to the front of their group.

He resolved himself. "Chieftain, sir, he had hostile intent. I thought he would be threat-"

"Except I didn't do anything, and you've been trying to arrest me for nothing. Do the White Fang even have authority to arrest people here?"

Jaune's point was quickly answered by Blake. "Not when I was last here."

Ghira continued. "And they still don't. Who ordered this?"

The bear faunus answered quickly. "Lady Khan, sir."

"And she ordered you to kill the human?" Ghira questioned, his frown deepening.

"N-no, sir, he had hostile intent-"

This time it was Blake that came to Jaune's defense. "Jaune was trying to talk it out! I'm the one who pulled a weapon!"

Ghira silenced both sides with raised hands. "Enough. Soldiers, go back to Lady Khan. Tell her I wish to speak with her, urgently. Otherwise, leave the human alone."

The soldiers, in the face of possibly the most important man in Menagerie, backed up as fast as humanly- Jaune needed to work on that- 'faunusly' possible, already departing underneath the intense gaze of the Chieftain.

The intense gaze that was slowly but surely directed at Jaune. "Look, sir, I really didn't start it."

He sighed, gaze softening as he looked at his daughter. "Blake… it's good to see you. Come, let's get home."

Despite everything, including the sudden headache from the bullet that had knocked nearly a quarter of his AP off, Jaune couldn't help but smile.

* * *

The Belladonna household, or rather the Chieftain's Lodging, as it was officially titled, was enormous. Like, properly enormous. Bigger than any house Jaune had ever been in, and he'd lived in the biggest house in his home village.

The Chieftain had opened the front door with a heave, and ushered the two inside.

"Ghira? You're back from your rounds already?"

The voice, female and older yet vaguely familiar, was soon accompanied by a face, one that was also vaguely familiar.

"I've had to make a little detour, Kali. I've… brought someone back home."

Kali Belladonna looked so much like an older Blake it was difficult for Jaune to properly remember that it was because they were directly related. He wasn't exactly great with familial similarity, considering the significant distance between his own father's physical form and Jaune's own.

Kali moved like a woman possessed, wrapping Blake tightly in her arms with a choked-back sob. "Blake? Is it really you?"

Blake was caught completely off-guard, hands hovering in the air for a single moment before she recovered, wrapping them around her mother and hugging her in return.

Jaune still hadn't lost his smile, but it was dampened slightly as the two broke apart, the older woman turning to face him with a curious expression.

"Blake, who is this?" Kali asked, and Jaune felt a chill run down his spine.

As if Blake picked up on a tone that Jaune couldn't recognize, she was quick to dismiss him. "That's Jaune, my team leader."

"Team leader?" Kali and Ghira echoed, sharing a confused look.

"Maybe we should take a seat. It's… a long story."

Jaune followed the Belladonna family through into a large dining room with a small table set in the middle, low to the ground with four cushions for seats. Unfamiliar furniture, to Jaune, but it wouldn't pose a problem regardless.

If cushions posed a problem then Jaune had more significant things to worry about.

Alongside the rest of them Jaune took the remaining seat as tea was poured into cups, and he gladly took one, relishing in the warmth of the flavorful liquid.

He sat back, placing one hand against the floor to balance, and waited for his turn to speak. He knew it was bound to come up at some point, even if it meant defending himself from some accusation that was completely unfounded and not at all true. Except for the times where the situation was entirely his fault, but he had practise in denial, so he could handle that too.

"So, Blake. I think it best if you start at the beginning, my darling girl," Kali began, and Blake nodded, searching for the start, the right words to use.

"I… I left, the White Fang. Adam-" Blake paused for a moment, taking a breath. "Adam had turned it from the White Fang we knew into something… darker. More evil. I wanted to do something to help fix that. So I went to Beacon Academy."

"And you became a Huntress?" Ghira asked, taking a sip from his cup.

Blake nodded. "Jaune and I were placed on the same team, AWBN, with Jaune as our leader."

Both Ghira and Kali looked towards Jaune, and he gave a small wave. "It's honestly been a pleasure to have Blake on our team. Despite the… uh, White Fang problem. Though with Weiss that was kind of already a problem."

Ghira's eyebrows both went up and Kali effectively replicated, or rather revealed the origin, of Blake's raised eyebrow. "Weiss Schnee?"

Blake let out a sigh. "Thanks, Jaune. I was going to ease them into that one."

Jaune rubbed at the back of his head. "Uh, oops?"

"One of your team was a Schnee?" Ghira asked, a frown beginning to deepen on his face.

"Weiss is a close friend, Dad. She isn't like her father." Blake was quick to assuage her father's doubts. "She's my partner. Jaune's partner is Pyrrha Nikos."

"The Mistralian combat champion?" Kali asked. "I've watched a few of her matches, she's a remarkable fighter."

Jaune smiled. "She certainly wiped the floor with me a few times. Good times."

"Until you were able to keep up with all of us, and RRYN," Blake replied, scowling. "Stupid cheating semblance."

"I did say I wouldn't use it if you guys didn't want me to."

"Focus, Blake," Kali admonished, much to Blake's chagrin.

"Right, sorry. We fought the White Fang and the people they were working with for most of the year, until the Vytal Festival…"

"And then Beacon fell," Jaune said, his smile dropping, one fist clenched.

"And then Beacon fell," Blake repeated, ears drooping atop her head. "Adam and the White Fang brought Grimm into the school, killed civilians both human and faunus."

The paling of the both Ghira and Kali's faces only served to make Jaune clench his fist harder.

"The White Fang did that? Sienna would never have agreed to it. We may have our differences, but she'd never authorize something like that," Ghira muttered, his fist coming to rest against the table.

"It happened, Dad. We were there," Blake said. "Jaune and RRYN's team leader Ruby were the only people between the perpetrators, the Grimm and Vale."

"For all the good it really did, anyway," Jaune murmured, staring at his tea. When he realised that three people were looking at him, he increased his volume and continued. "All of us were nearly killed. I was petrified, and not in the 'afraid' sense."

Blake nodded. "I… I was stabbed, by Adam. Through the chest. I would've died if it weren't for Weiss, Nora and Ren."

Kali's hand immediately sought out Blake's, holding it tightly. "Blake, darling…"

Ghira's reaction was significantly more pronounced as he slammed his fist down on the table. "That bastard…"

Jaune couldn't help but agree with Ghira, but he didn't voice it, instead allowing Blake to continue.

"We need to stop him. Stop the White Fang from ever doing something like this again. I came here to see you both, to apologize for the way I left, and to tell you about the White Fang, in case you didn't know."

Jaune knew where the conversation was headed, and he stood up. "I'll leave you to the family stuff. I have a couple semblance things to deal with."

Blake looked at him, and Jaune rolled his eyes. "Yes, I'll stay out of trouble."

"It's not like I asked to get shot," he muttered on the way out, loud enough to be heard.

* * *

Menagerie's weather was almost directly opposite to Vale's, and Jaune found himself shrugging off his coat, stowing it in his inventory as he wiped his brow clear of sweat. It was without a doubt a warm day, but he appreciated it all the same.

He liked overcast days, but so many in a row back in Vale had put a damper on his mood a little. Bright sunlight like this was a great way to pick up his mood, and the lack of humidity made it a lot less like Vale's summer.

The rear of the Belladonna household featured a large walled-in compound with plenty of space for Jaune to work in, and he had to imagine that as long as he didn't cause any lasting property damage the family wouldn't object to his being there.

He could see a few well-worn pieces of training gear in one corner of the compound, so it wasn't as if this was some kind of sacred area that training wasn't allowed in, either, even if what he was going to do only 'technically' counted as training.

Jaune ran through his mental list, checking what he could and could not do in the space he found himself limited by, and nodded to himself, reaching into his inventory to retrieve a number of items.

His flight over, before he'd stumbled across Blake and the Sea Feilong, had been a long one, and whilst he'd resolved himself to make best use of the time, there wasn't all that much he could do. He could make Soul Orbs, as he had, but with such a small amount of Ambient Aura in the air over the ocean, it had been a slow process.

That wasn't to say he hadn't made any, it had just taken a significant amount of time for the higher-tier orbs. Well, higher-tier orb. He'd only managed to make one Grand Soul Orb, and it had taken him over three hours of concentrating with such a low amount of Ambient Aura.

Now, though, there was a much greater amount in the air, he could feel it. Also the little HUD meter that flickered into view at his behest was a good indication, too, and probably more accurate than his own senses.

Kuo Kuana, the capital of Menagerie, was crammed full of faunus of all kinds, and with that many people in one place, it was an absolute boon to his soul harvesting, which, he had to admit, sounded significantly more macabre than he'd originally intended it to.

It took him roughly a quarter-hour before he'd created another Grand Soul Orb, marvelling at the glowing orb that fluctuated in his palm, the glow increasing and decreasing like it was breathing.

This, and the one he'd created on his flight, would serve as the catalysts for his next summon, and Jaune had a choice to make. One that made him nervous.

In his inventory, the next items he was to withdraw, were the drops from two different Grimm. Shai-Hulud Teeth and Epic Sea Feilong Gills.

There were a few issues with morality concerning the former, and a lack of water for the latter, which meant he had a decision to make before he could make the decision he needed to make.

"What I would give to have been given a linear RPG instead of this open-world decision-making simulator," Jaune grumbled under his breath, dropping all of his items back into his inventory. Another time would be far more sufficient, when he had the-

Jaune interrupted his own trail of thought, eyes snapping to the door to the household as the three Belladonna's stepped out, embroiled in quiet discussion.

Jaune cocked his head to the side, a silent expression of curiosity, and Blake motioned for him to come closer, which Jaune was more than obliged to do so, resting one hand comfortably on the grip of Crocea Mors. "Is something wrong?"

Ghira was the one to answer. "Before I ran into Blake and yourself in the thoroughfare, I was doing my rounds. Checking in with many of the people who keep Kuo Kuana running as smoothly as possible."

Jaune nodded along, taking in the tone of the Chieftain's voice. Worry tinged it, mingled with frustration. It was an expression of emotion he could more than commiserate with.

The hulking faunus continued. "I had been on my way back from organising a scouting party with the captain of my guard. We've had some losses in the jungles to the north-east, a settlement called Hallowed Quay failed our usual check-in. We had planned on sending a squad, but Blake volunteered herself and you alongside her. I don't like it, but if anything, you may be our best bet to re-establish contact, or at least find out what happened."

Jaune was more than happy to help out. "I'd be glad to help. It'll be nice to get away from all the eyes, too."

Ghira nodded solemnly. "I can understand, but bear in mind, if anything happens to Blake I will be holding you accountable."

The threat couldn't be clearer, and despite the look on both Blake and Kali's faces, Jaune accepted it as more of a promise than anything else. "Of course, sir. Blake is a teammate and friend. I'd never let anything happen if I had any way of stopping it."

At that, Ghira relaxed somewhat. "Thank you. Once you both return I will have already spoken with Sienna Khan about your visit. Despite the fact that you are human, I believe we will find a way to settle this issue before your return. Blake knows where the Hallowed Quay is, so unless you have any supplies you wish to purchase, you had both better depart sooner rather than later, as much as I wish it weren't the case."

 **[Quest Discovered!]**

 **[Hunter Bounty: Hallowed Quay]**

 **[Re-establish contact with Hallowed Quay!]**

 **[Reward: Materia Crystallum]**

"We'll be back in time for you to catch up and hear some entertaining stories of our time at Beacon, I promise," Jaune said with an easy grin, mentally dismissing the notification. "I have some great ones."

Ghira looked unimpressed, but Kali was beaming with a smile that promised mischief. "I like him."

Blake spun on her mother in an instant. "Mom!"

* * *

Jaune had decided to take back what he'd said about appreciating Menagerie's weather. It was hot. Very hot. Very, very hot, in fact, and the further the two of them stepped into the eastern jungle, the more humid it got.

It was not fun. It was, in fact, the direct opposite of fun. Even Blake had shed her new coat. He could understand why she'd invested in getting a new outfit, Menagerie was not a place that was designed for Valean winter-wear. Or summer-wear. Jaune wished he'd gone for a Sun-like outfit, now that he thought about it.

He'd already taken off his coat and placed it in his inventory, and now he was rolling up the sleeves of his black button-up, deciding to take off his orange armwraps along with the coat. It was only getting hotter, and it wasn't even mid-day yet.

"Blake, please tell me it isn't going to get any hotter."

Blake just laughed. "You poor Valean. This makes up for the times you laughed at me for not liking cold mornings."

"We were in Vale! It's almost impossible to have a hot day in Vale! This is like… like… a sauna!"

He stumbled across the word in his anti-weather fervour, and stuck with it like his shirt was sticking to his skin. "It's so hot!"

Blake shrugged. "Tough."

Jaune let out another sigh before pushing past a particularly leafy bush, wiping his forehead. "Seriously, though, I have some Ice Dust in my inventory. If we take a few minutes I can probably make an Ice Elemental summon."

Blake's steeled control over her emotions broke like a dam. "Oh thank the gods yes. I was waiting to see who broke first, I haven't had to deal with this weather for years. It's so damned hot."

Jaune nearly threatened to withhold his Ice Elemental just because of that, but the heat gave him reason to discard that idea as he cleared some space with _Terrakinesis_ , carving the ritual circle into the ground.

Into the center of the circle went possibly the most refreshing of any Dust Crystal Jaune had ever held and two Regular Soul Orbs, and he took a step back, standing next to Blake as he concentrated.

The glow wasn't warm, like he was used to, but that could have been simply because it was colder than the humid air that enveloped them, and Jaune closed his eyes for a moment, before the glow simply ceased.

In its place stood an Elemental made of ice, roughly seven feet tall, with what could only be called supercooled air wafting from its body.

Blake was instantly standing next to it, and Jaune was only a split-second behind as they enjoyed the feeling of sudden air-conditioning.

Much like opening a fridge and sticking his head inside on a hot day, Glacius, for that was what Jaune had decided to name it, was only somewhat effective in such an open area, but it was far better than nothing, and neither Jaune nor Blake were willing or able to complain.

 **[You've gained a new summon!]**

 **[Glacius]**

 **[Ice Elemental]**

 **[Shard]**

 **[** _ **Blizzard (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, your Ice Elemental is capable of releasing a gust of frigid air that can freeze anything nearby._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

Jaune wasn't deluded, or hot enough, to contemplate using _Blizzard_ on himself, but if it was any hotter he'd definitely consider it.

As it was, both he and Blake let out sighs of relief, doing their best to wipe the sweat from their faces as it dripped down mercilessly.

"Do you think we're far enough away from Kuo Kuana now?" Jaune asked Blake, a concerned look on his face. "I want to get us up in the air as soon as possible, but I don't want to risk anything."

It took Blake a single moment, but she had an answer soon enough. "It should be fine. Hallowed Quay lost contact, and we have to assume the worst, so I don't think another airborne Grimm or two will really be a big deal."

Jaune nodded, giving Glacius a grateful nod as the Elemental unsummoned itself and in its place formed Shirdal. "I'd bring out Alcmena or Apollo, but I still want to keep a low profile."

Blake stepped closer to Shirdal, running one hand along his flank. "You have a lot of summons, now."

It was an observation, a statement not a question, but Jaune answered all the same. "Yeah. I get the feeling there are more, though. Lots of Grimm means lots of summons, the problem is they're starting to cost a lot more with every one I summon."

Blake eyed the saddle. "You had a saddle made?"

Jaune nodded, slinging himself up and into it, extending a helping hand to heft Blake into it as well. "Had it made in Patch, before I left. Shirdal seems to be able to appear with it when summoned, so we don't have to worry about getting it all sorted for a flight. It's convenient, that's for sure."

Blake took his arm by the wrist, and he hauled her up without difficulty, a combination of his own natural strength and her own natural dexterity allowing her to sit without a problem. "We're only an hour's flight out, so don't push it too hard."

Jaune nodded, running a hand down the side of Shirdal's neck. "Hear that? Easy does it, Shirdal, we've got a new flyer aboard."

Shirdal tossed his head with a low caw, and pumped his powerful wings, already gaining altitude as Blake let out a dismissive noise. "I may have never flown before, but I'm not going to get airsick or something, Jaune, I am a Huntress."

Jaune rolled his eyes. "Yeah, because you can't be a Hunter if you get airsick."

Blake was far too perceptive when it came to his sarcasm, and he'd practically just damned himself. "Jaune, do you get airsick?"

"A; motion sickness is far more of a problem than people let on! And B; not anymore, thanks to my semblance!"

All that met that was stunned silence.

Jaune slumped in the saddle. He was in for a long flight. Again.

* * *

The approach to Hallowed Quay was with something akin to an anxiousness in the air, and both Blake and Jaune could feel it.

There was no smoke, no fire, no rubble, and, most importantly, no people.

That last part was also the worst part, thanks in part to the implication it held. If there was no sign of a struggle, then where had the people gone?

Jaune vocalised that thought, concern interlinked between every word, stringing the sentence together with a level of worry that he hadn't heard in his own voice for some time.

Instead of an answer, Blake remained silent, which gave Jaune all the more reason to be concerned. To be fair, Blake was normally quiet, but for something like this…

Jaune urged Shirdal lower, towards the open gates of Hallowed Quay, and they quickly touched down without issue, sliding off the saddle and drawing their weapons, Jaune choosing to withdraw Tranquility, unfolding the shotgun and checking the chamber quickly, making sure it was loaded.

If he was going to be investigating a settlement of mysteriously disappeared people he wanted to be holding something with significant firepower.

He also didn't have any ammunition for either Sandstorm or Predator, so that ruled those out. That was definitely something he'd have to look for when he was back in Kuo Kuana. If people would sell anything to him, of course.

"Jaune, would you focus please?" Blake's admonishment snapped Jaune out of his thoughts, and he quickly caught up to his teammate, peering through the gate as she was.

"See anything?" He asked, peering around. "It looks abandoned, but…"

Blake didn't have an answer to his unspoken question, instead replying with a question of her own. "If it was abandoned, they'd have left a message, or we'd have found survivors. According to Dad if they'd ran they'd have made it back to Kuo Kuana before we left. Something happened."

"It's just a matter of figuring out what, huh?" Jaune muttered. "Story of my life."

He nearly cried out in alarm as a notification appeared unprompted.

 **[Quest Updated!]**

 **[Hunter Bounty: Hallowed Quay]**

 **[Discover what happened to the inhabitants of Hallowed Quay.]**

Blake was staring at him, but he waved her off with a half-hearted 'don't worry', instead stepping through the gate and into Hallowed Quay, Blake following suit.

Shirdal did not follow, instead unsummoning and instead deciding to apparently inform Cadejo and Freyja of the situation, as the Beowolf and the Boarbatusk summons formed next to their master, a quiet bark and a snuffling snort being their customary greeting in the situation.

Jaune was more than happy to have the help, kneeling. "Freyja, Cadejo, search the streets, engage Grimm but don't get close to survivors if you see any. Blake, can you search the buildings on this side? I'll take the coastal side, if that's alright."

Blake nodded as Cadejo and Freyja took off, the cat faunus keeping her weapon steady as she headed for what Jaune could only assume was a guard tower, considering its position as a part of the wall next to the gate. A good start for an investigation.

Jaune gave the surrounding area one quick glance before he departed, heading down the main street towards the sound and smell of the ocean, keeping a firm hand on Tranquility's grip as he did so, prepared for an ambush.

An ambush that never appeared to come, as he made it all the way to the other side of Hallowed Quay, descending down some rough-hewn stone steps and through another empty, open gate onto the beach itself, beautiful white sand belying the danger it may have held, or at least the dangers the ocean held.

Nothing. No tracks, no evidence of what happened. Just peaceful waves and hot sand.

Jaune frowned, giving the beach one last scan before returning back up the steps, concern etched into his face.

They knew something was wrong, so there wasn't much point in stating it aloud, but Jaune did so anyway, muttering it to himself as he walked, checking the nearest building, what looked like a general store.

He poked his head in through the open door, barrel of Tranquility following next, then the rest of him as he stepped inside, pushing past the peaceful, stocked shelves and taking a glance behind the counter.

Nothing once again. Just some spilled bags of rice, an upturned basket of fruit and a red stain.

Jaune paused, frowning and quickly clearing the counter, checking the ground.

It wasn't blood. The shattered jar that lay concealed from his prior point of view indicated that it was in fact a knocked-over jar of strawberry jelly, or as the label indicated, jam. Jaune wasn't entirely sure the difference between the two, but he'd seen Yang embroiled in a number of arguments with Blake about the name, so he knew it was a cultural difference.

Jaune had grown up with peanut butter and jelly, Blake had grown up with peanut butter and jam, both turned out to be the same thing.

That wasn't important right now, of course. What was important was the fact that this was the biggest amount of evidence he'd seen so far.

There was something else, too, underneath the counter itself. He couldn't make it out from where he was, he'd have to bend down and practically crawl underneath, but that wasn't too difficult to do.

He clambered underneath, hand outstretched, managing to snag the small metal object with two fingers and pull it closer, closer still-

"Jaune!"

Blake's voice startled him, and he lifted his head up to look, smacking it against the top of the counter with a loud thwack and a brief interlude of groaning and mild swearing as he backed out from underneath the counter, keeping a firm grip on the newly acquired scroll, already moving through the door to see what Blake was shouting his name for.

"Something up?" Jaune asked, looking around and not seeing anything different from what it had been only moments before.

Blake raised an eyebrow at his head-rubbing, but to be fair he'd put a hefty dent in the counter with the top of his head, and instantly healing didn't make the pain go away. "That entire side of the settlement is empty. There's nothing there, not even any evidence of a struggle, or even an evacuation. It's as if everyone just disappeared."

Jaune frowned. "Nothing on the beach, either, not even tracks. There was a few broken things on the floor of the general store, just behind the counter, but everything else was untouched. And I found this scroll underneath the counter, wedged pretty far under."

He opened it with practised ease, and Blake stepped over, the two of them met with a lock screen. "Oh, great. Just what we needed. You wouldn't happen to know how to crack a scroll-lock, would you?"

Blake shook her head. "Not really my specialty. Your semblance doesn't give you a hack skill?"

Jaune shrugged. "Haven't tried it, I guess. Probably, now that I think about it. One sec."

Jaune decided against trying to push Mana into the scroll. That was probably a good way to blow it up. Instead, he simply focused and tried to type in the correct passcode.

Two things happened. First, he got the passcode wrong. Second, a notification popped up.

 **[Skill Created!]**

 **[** _ **Hacking (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can now hack into electronic devices such as Scrolls, Desk-Scrolls and other devices without significant difficulty. Requires hacking tools._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

Jaune swore under his breath. "Good news, I can hack. Bad news, I need hacking tools."

Blake quirked an eyebrow. "Hacking tools, meaning?"

That was a very good question. "Uh… I have no idea."

"You can't just… open the device and fiddle with circuitry?"

Jaune stared at Blake. "Blake, that's not how it-"

He interrupted himself. "You've got to be kidding me."

Blake was about to ask, but Jaune was already popping the bottom off the scroll, fiddling with it.

It took a few seconds, but Jaune and Blake could both hear the little chime, and suddenly Jaune found himself both impressed and disappointed. "You'd think they'd have better security on these things."

 _Hacking_ had leveled, though, despite Jaune's prior belief that you couldn't break into a scroll by just fiddling with the circuitry, even if that was the simplest way to put it.

What he'd actually done was open the scroll and go to the main-

"Jaune, what's on the scroll?"

Right.

He quickly searched through the device, looking for anything that could be important.

Seeing as there was quite literally only one thing on the scroll, he had to assume it was at least a little bit important.

"It's a video, which always bodes well. I've seen enough private-eye-slash-cop-shows to know how this goes."

Blake rolled her eyes, seizing the scroll from Jaune's hand and tapping on the video.

" _If you're watching this, it got us all. I'm so, so sorry. We'd thought it was a friend, we thought it was on our side. I invited it to eat dinner with my daughters, for fuck's sake!"_

The man, a set of scales on his cheeks, looked panicked, constantly looking over the top of the counter he was cowering against.

" _We were having a celebration, a town feast. I don't remember why, but it had been invited. It arrived, joined in the fun, and then suddenly it just… snapped. Something was wrong! Before anyone could react, it had killed so many of us! I just ran…"_

Tears were streaming down the man's face, now.

" _Alice, Dawn, if you see this, if you're somehow still alive, I'm so sorry. My darlings, I'll try to find you, to get you back, but I don't know if-"_

The video cut out, ending abruptly.

Jaune met Blake's worried eyes, and asked the silent question. "It? Like, one?"

They needed to get back to Kuo Kuana. They could both agree on that. And they would have departed immediately, if not for the sudden scream of what sounded like a young girl.

* * *

 **Ooh, I'm proud of myself for this chapter, that's for sure. I do love how it plays out, even despite the fact that I may have to make some background changes to let it properly play out as I want it to, but that's to be expected. Hallowed Quay was completely unplanned, and I didn't plan for what's going to happen to happen so soon into the plot, but it fit just too well, so it's happening.**

 **Also considering Menagerie is literally Remnant-Australia, I figured it'd be great to add a couple Aussie things to the place. Mainly the temperature. It's Spring over here, and today is easily going to be 40 Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) and I don't have air-conditioning. Oh joy. Wish I could summon an Ice Elemental.**

 **Anyways, enough of my ramblings, I'll get right into reviews.**

 **Fyr RedNight: I don't suppose I ever really stated whether the Luck Stat was 'Good' Luck or 'Bad' Luck. Maybe the higher his LCK the worse it is for him, haha. I'm really glad to be back writing the banter, too, I'd missed it.**

 **Sperance: I'm pretty sure that the higher Jaune's CHA, the harder it will be convincing Kali that he and Blake aren't interested in each other, lmao. If we're being honest, though, it was a legitimately tough choice I made when I chose to write Lancaster over Knightshade.**

 **KingAllen: I think that's just a flaw with the way many of the situations have played out. Blake is probably one of my favorite RWBY characters to write with simply because she has so much motivation to work with, and that has made Jaune and Blake a kind of partnership that can come across as romantic, at times. For the sake of clarity, Blake and Jaune are, at the least, close friends.**

 **Ints: To be fair, Jaune is an intimidating figure if you don't know him. Plus, with his boosted CHA, it works both ways. Sure, he can be more suave, but when you consider that Intimidating Presence also works off of CHA, it means that he seems terrifying to those that would normally be nervous of his presence. It's a boost to both sides of the coin. It was also an accidental discharge, though the faunus behind the rifle would never admit to being scared of a human.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: Jaune just says 'no u' and the White Fang immediately disintegrate. Flawless, timeless strategy.**

 **armentho: Well, technically Jaune could go and study a bunch of other careers, but there's a cost factor, and I don't mean Lien. He's working on a tight schedule, with more than just the Grimm to fight against. The amount of casualties would be far greater. Also, that does not make for a good story, if we're being honest. It kind of kills the story.**

 **Dragon lord Syed 101: Sun is currently, as far as I've decided thus far, in Mistral with his team. Though that may be subject to change from anytime after you read this.**

 **SaberPrototype15: I've not actually seen HunterxHunter beyond the first arc. I always meant to continue watching it, it wasn't bad, but I just can't sit still long enough to watch a long-winded shonen.**

 **Exiled Soul Nomad: If we're being perfectly honest and open with each other I absolutely wanted Jaune to fight that dude. Of course, a murder charge isn't a great way to start off your time on an island where your friend's father is the Chieftain.**

 **IHateGenericCereal: Papa Belladonna has called White Fang mom to his office. It's either the start of a Mistralian porno or something far, far more imposing. And whilst we may not have seen the new outfits just yet, I imagine that's what Chapter 3 will be. Seems like they've set us up completely for that to happen. The discussion post on the subreddit is going to be very, very active this week.**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: Not intentionally. I'd originally not understood where you thought, but then it occurred to me after quite literally a week. I'm not a smart man.**

 **Sm0keyPanda: The man is like 6 foot wide and all muscle. He's a literal walking mountain!**

 **typhonyx: When they get a chance to relax and talk, I imagine Kali would get along quite well with Jaune, as we (sort-of) see with Sun and Kali in canon. I'm glad you're liking the direction I'm taking character interaction, it's a difficult thing to get right, especially with how many characters there are in RWBY. Hell, we literally only see CFVY and SSSN in Systema, but I want them to have a couple chapters of interaction later down the line. Much later, we're more than a year into this fic and I've only just started the Vol 4+ timeline. Hoo boy.**

 **Nagisa Tr: Considering Aura Control is 'technically' a defensive skill, I didn't want an offensive ability that could do direct damage. It's a balancing choice, and it works more like 'vampiric thorns' rather than straight vampiric strikes. There are other offensive vampiric methods available, though. Also, Crafting as a whole is still a little bit of a Work In Progress, XP-wise at least. It's currently pretty hard to level consistently, in comparison with many other Utility skills such as Soul Harvest, which level remarkably fast. It does have a number of really, really important stuff in there, though, stuff that has an absolute shit-ton of uses. Once Jaune gets a bit of a breather, that'll be a significant focus.**

 **dirtrevor: Turns out it's a secret skill that allows Jaune to execute anyone female. Instant Cinder kill confirmed.**

 **Guest: Not a Nuckelavee summon per se, but something very close. Technically, at least. I've got a couple things in the background that are planned for the Nuckelavee and its constituents, if and when it shows up. As for why Summons seem more effective against Grimm than they do against other targets it's because of Aura. Bound Souls are limited in combat capability against those with Aura, so it doesn't work nearly as well. Also summons rarely do all that well individually, even Alcmena, the first summon, doesn't have more than forty total kills, at an estimate. Jaune easily has five-hundred total kills, at a guess. Also no, they can't access the inventory, unless they're assigned an item, like Shirdal's saddle, which is technically 'equipment' and isn't stored in the inventory when Shirdal is unsummoned.**

 **FORD B: Life being busy is something I can understand, but I'm glad you've had some time to keep up! Glad to have you still!**

 **jedimasterb10: Man, over the years they've really mangled that quote. Speaking of honorable men, I'm going to enjoy when I get the time to really write for Ghira, instead of the few lines he got this chapter. He's still in quite a bit of shock from Blake just showing up.**

 **omniscient tree: I'm so, so glad that you don't realize that I've essentially set a reputation for myself as someone who only makes threats I can't and won't keep. When you read this be sure to know that I promise I won't have Ruby die in Jaune's arms after taking a hit that he just couldn't save her from. Definitely not.**

 **razmire: Somehow, even with canon-wise Sienna being in Mistral, you still manage to somehow predict one of my story-threads. How you do it I have no idea.**

 **Atryx10: Unreconcileable fucktard? Nitwit without peers? It almost sounds like you have a grudge against writers who don't invest everything into LCK instantly. Almost. I can understand where you're coming from, though, even if in Systema LCK isn't quite what I imagine you believe luck to be. It isn't so much a twisting of fate in your favor as a bonus to certain randomized facets. Even with MAX LCK Jaune can still miss shots, get bad drops, get injured. It isn't a guarantee, it never is.**

 **Well, that brings us to the end of Systema for this week. Glad you could all stop by!**

 **If anyone ever feels like they'd wish to help support me and my writing, feel free to stop by my Pa Treon! I've got a few reward tiers, if you feel so inclined!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	64. Definitely Arachnophobia This Time

**Apologies that this chapter took an extra day to get written, implementing a bunch of new mechanics was a bit more complicated than I'd expected them to be. Sorry about that, but hopefully it's worth it.**

 **Thanks this month to my Patrons; Maxstroid, Justas Kondrusevicius and Fittzym! I really appreciate your support!**

* * *

There was a single moment where Blake and Jaune shared a glance before they moved, heading in the direction of the scream, drawing their weapons, expecting some kind of threat.

Considering the mysterious circumstances of the entirety of Hallowed Quay, it wasn't an overreaction on any level.

Jaune rounded the corner first, closely followed by Blake, and the two quickly noticed who had screamed.

A young girl, no more than twelve at Jaune's best guess, crawling backwards, trying to get as far away from the threat in front of her as she could.

The threat being Freyja, the porcine summon snuffling and stepping back in concern.

Jaune figured the fastest way to deal with the situation would be to simply desummon Freyja, and Cadejo, who wasn't within eyeshot but was headed in their direction, until both vanished into wherever they stayed when not active.

Jaune quickly sheathed his weapon, holding out one hand. "Hey, hey, easy… they're gone now, you're safe."

Blake didn't stow Gambol Shroud, instead simply lowering it, keeping a wary eye on the little faunus girl as she looked around in a frantic panic, her eyes meeting Jaune's and widening just a little. Whether it was from disbelief, relief or fear, Jaune didn't know.

"It's okay. We're Hunters, we're here to help," Jaune continued, doing his best to placate the young girl. "What's your name?"

He needed to get her talking, to distract her, keep her attention focused on something. It was something Professor Oobleck had mentioned during one of their classes back at Beacon, and he was remembering it now clear as day.

The girl's frantic eyes remained fixated on Jaune, but she opened her mouth and spoke all the same. "D-Dawn…"

"Okay, Dawn, are you injured? Does anything hurt?" Jaune continued, making sure not to move to close to her. He knew that his lack of faunus traits might not be as terrifying to the girl as whatever she'd gone through, but that didn't mean rushing towards her was a good choice.

Dawn replied non-verbally to his inquiry, shaking her head rapidly, finally breaking eye contact and looking at the ground.

"That's good… now, I know this is going to be a difficult question, but can you tell me what happened?"

Dawn looked up, her eyes this time latching onto Blake's own, before snapping back to Jaune. There was no response, just a set of unblinkingly confused eyes.

He could hear the frustration in Blake's exhalation, and he was feeling the same thing, but that took a backseat to his job. "That's alright. Do you know anyone outside of town that we can take you to?"

Another non-verbal reply, another shake of the head. Jaune turned to Blake. "Is there a place in Kuo Kuana we can take her?"

Blake nodded. "I assume so. We'll have to check, but we can't just leave her here in the meantime."

"What about my sister?"

It was the first set of unprompted words that Dawn had said thus far, and it caught the attention of both Hunters.

"Do you know where your sister is, Dawn?" Jaune asked quickly.

Dawn nodded. "She and Daddy went down to the beach with everyone else."

Jaune exchanged a quick look with Blake, before doubling down. "Why were you back here when everyone else was at the beach?"

"I forgot my floaties." Dawn's answer was not entirely what Jaune had expected, but it definitely reminded him of one of his younger sisters.

"Right. Dawn, can you take Blake and I down to the last place you saw them?"

Dawn slowly clambered to her feet, taking a wary step towards Blake and holding out her hand.

Blake did her best to hide her concerned expression and took the young girl's hand, allowing herself to be led along down the street, Jaune in tow.

He kept one uneasy hand on his blade, much the same as Blake kept Gambol Shroud drawn, though the weapons didn't seem to be bothering Dawn as she increased her pace, beginning to drag Blake towards where Jaune knew the coast sat. He wasn't holding out hope that something on the beach had changed, but stranger things had happened.

They reached the stone-hewn steps, Dawn pulling Blake down them, Jaune easily keeping pace, and they found his expectation proven true, the sand and water as undisturbed as it had been only minutes ago.

Dawn wasn't disappointed by that, though, instead pointing along the coast. "Daddy and everyone went over there, to the bay," she said, and both Jaune and Blake peered towards where the small girl was pointing.

Blake released Dawn's hand, and the girl simply sat down in the sand, scrunching some in her fingers before letting it pour out between the gaps as Jaune stepped to the side, Blake lowering her voice.

"What do we do? We can't go in somewhere like that with her with us, it's way too dangerous," Blake began, and Jaune frowned.

"We may not have a choice. There could be survivors, and we can't spend the time to take her back to Kuo Kuana. You just protect her, keep any Grimm from getting close, I'll handle the main combat. It kind of is my specialty."

Jaune could see Blake's fist tighten on Gambol Shroud's handle, and he let out a sigh. "It's our only real option, Blake."

"We're walking into a complete unknown, Jaune."

"Since when has it ever been different? Mountain Glenn, Beacon, even the boat here, Blake, it's always been an unknown. We don't have the time to spend, even on Shirdal. That's not even considering the problem of summoning with her around."

Blake let out a very similar sigh of frustration. "Fine. You'd better be prepared for anything, though."

Jaune nodded. "Always."

The two turned towards where Dawn had been moments before, only to see her already walking towards the bay.

They moved at the same pace, letting the young girl stay just out of earshot. "Is something bugging you?"

Jaune's question caught Blake off-guard. "I- no, it's nothing."

"Instinct?"

Blake's head whipped around towards him. "How did-"

"Same thing here. My _Sixth Sense_ is lit up like a winter solstice decoration. It keeps telling me 'danger' but I haven't seen it yet."

Blake hummed in thought. "It's Dawn. Something about her is… off. Like she has an Aura, but at so young?"

Jaune shrugged. "It happens from time to time, especially in outer settlements. My younger sister Marigold had hers activated when she was nearly killed exploring the woods near where we lived. She took a lone Beowolf to the chest, the stress activated her Aura. She'd have died otherwise."

Blake seemed surprised. "Even in situations like that, Aura is meaningless without training. How'd she escape?"

"Arc blood. Natural boost to our Aura. It manifested as a perk for me without me doing anything to unlock it, and the rest of my family have abnormally large Aura reserves."

"That does bring us back to our original point, though. It's not often a little girl makes all the hair on the back of my neck stand on end." Blake looked back towards Dawn. "Plus she doesn't strike me as a girl who's just experienced a potentially traumatic event."

"Could just be shock, or she's just more capable than we're giving her credit for. But I agree though, something's up. Maybe she has a semblance that she can't turn off or something?"

"Like your _Intimidating Presence_?" Blake asked, and Jaune nodded.

"Yeah, exactly. Or something similar, at least. Stay on your guard, though. We don't know what we're dealing with."

He let that sit, but he couldn't let the thought go. His father had always said that he should trust his instincts.

On the other hand, though, his mother had always stressed the importance of not pointing weapons at small, terrified, potentially traumatised children who may or may not be the only survivor of a settlement-wide event.

Safe to say Jaune was wrestling with outcomes, none of which were looking all too bright.

They were getting closer to the bay, though, and Jaune was starting to make out details in the distance, a large rock outcropping jutting out from the water less than a kilometer off the coast becoming far more prominent now that he had a good line of sight on it.

Honestly, he was wondering why his focus hadn't strayed to it earlier. It was huge, towering up and casting a thin but tall shadow across part of the bay.

Though it was incredibly tall, however, it was barely a hundred meters wide. It was just like a giant spike of earth that stuck out from the ground, complete with what looked like a sharpened tip.

Jaune could see the Grimm circling the point at the top.

Blake's attention was focused elsewhere, however. "Jaune, there's an entrance at the base of the outcropping."

Jaune snapped his attention downwards as he deployed Crocea Mors' shield, keeping it steady on one arm as he activated _Mana Sight_.

It didn't enhance his vision in the typical way, but it did provide the slightest benefit of being able to see if anything hostile lurked within.

Blake glowed bright blue, as the skill description said, and the Grimm at the top glowed bright red, though it was faint from this distance.

What really made Jaune nervous was the fact that Dawn lit up bright red, her head turned to look straight at him, cocked to the side like she was confused.

"Uh…"

Dawn broke into an outright sprint, moving far faster than any twelve-year-old had any right to, and before either Jaune or Blake could react, plunging straight into the water, disappearing under the surface.

"Uh…" Jaune repeated, and Blake echoed him, confusion evident.

Dawn didn't resurface.

 **[Dungeon Discovered!]**

 **[Lair: Hallowed Bay]**

 **[Not Yet Cleared]**

 **[Quest Discovered!]**

 **[Dungeon Crawling]**

 **[Clear the first floor of a Dungeon.]**

 **[Reward: Citrine Chest Key]**

Jaune ran one hand through his hair. "I'm so confused."

* * *

"It's a dungeon? Like, a legitimate video game dungeon?" Blake asked, having planted herself in the sand, one hand supporting herself on the ground.

Jaune took a seat next to her, burying the blade of Crocea Mors down and using it as leverage to balance against. "Seems like it."

"Has this ever happened before?"

Jaune shook his head. "The only thing I can think of that's similar is the Raid Zone mechanic, like Mountain Glenn."

"That has to be the place that the townspeople went, right? And what the hell just happened with Dawn?" Blake pushed some loose hair out of her face, letting out a long sigh.

"The moment I activated _Mana Sight_ Dawn showed up as hostile. I might've thought it was something to do with what we were talking about earlier, but… well, she took off like she'd been discovered. Are there any Grimm that can disguise themselves?"

The question seemed to rock Blake to her core, and she slipped in the sand, nearly falling on her back. "If there is…"

"Then the entirety of Remnant is in serious danger. No one is prepared for that sort of thing, and if there's never been any sightings before it doesn't mean they aren't out there…"

"We need to check it out. If anything, we can find out and tell my father. At least there won't be no evidence after we check it out."

Jaune took nearly a minute before he replied, deep in thought. "We'll check it out, but if it's too much to deal with, we pull back. If we die, well, that's not a great thing, but it also means that no one knows about anything we've discovered. Plus we can go back to Kuo Kuana and gear up properly. I'm not exactly teeming with ammunition right now."

"Sounds like a plan, then," Blake said, stretching. "Though what you might be able to deal with and what I might be able to deal with are two different things."

Jaune nodded. "Just let me know if it's too much to deal with, we'll pull back. I don't know what this place is going to be like, though, so who knows what we'll be facing."

"Probably some Grimm."

Blake's deadpan delivery was a welcome break of humor, and he half-heartedly glared at her. "I mean, yeah, I figured that part out. Thanks."

"Anytime."

Jaune stood from his sandy seat, absent-mindedly grasping Crocea Mors and hefting it out of the sand, slinging it over his shoulder. "You ready?"

Blake lifted to her feet, giving Gambol Shroud a quick check. "It seems so."

"Okay. Let's get started."

Jaune stepped down the beach to the water, placing his hands into the cool liquid and concentrating, feeling out into the depths of the terrain.

Blake quirked an eyebrow until she heard the faint rumbling of moving earth, and she took a slight step back as Jaune used _Terrakinesis_.

Almost like stone tiles, the earth rose from under the water, displacing the liquid, creating a bridge to the outcropping slowly but surely, arising in segments.

Jaune didn't have anywhere near enough control or even Mana to simply raise an entire bridge in one go, but his range was enough that he could create them in separate tiles, just high enough to not be under the water.

Was Jaune doing it for practical reasons, yes. Was he also doing it that way because of the aesthetic? Absolutely, it looked really damn cool. He wasn't gonna lie, that was half the fun.

"That was deliberate, wasn't it." Blake said it like a question, but they both already knew the answer.

Jaune was already moving across the bridge he'd created. "Come on, Blake, I'd like to at least get this done before evening. I don't want to be trekking back to Kuo Kuana in the dark, no matter how little it matters to you. I still don't have night-vision."

"Coming from anyone else I'd say that was arrogance, but knowing you you'll probably get night-vision in a couple days."

Jaune let out a laugh as he gently nudged a fish back into the water with his foot. "I doubt it. It's been a haphazard few days, and I don't have any idea what's next."

"The more things change, the more they stay the same?"

"Something like that, I guess."

Tightening his grip on his shield, Jaune quickly sheathed Crocea Mors and cast his eyes skyward. "They aren't coming for us."

The Grimm in question continued to cycle around the peak, all the while raising Jaune's concern. "The fact that they haven't tried to attack is disconcerting."

Not wanting to tempt fate, Jaune sped up, Blake following close behind as the two stepped off the recently submerged stone tiles onto the rough terrain of the outcropping.

"Want to take a look, or should I just light it up?"

Blake gestured for him to go ahead, and Jaune cast _Candlelight_ , guiding the small glowing orb to float into the cavernous entrance, illuminating it.

There was a single moment before either Jaune or Blake noticed anything, and that moment extended until the _Candlelight_ reached the other side of the cavern.

"Okay… empty yet incredibly foreboding cavern. Excellent," Jaune remarked nervously. "Do we just…"

Blake shrugged her shoulders and stepped inside, Jaune sticking close behind.

The moment the both of them stepped through, the cavern entrance made a cacophonous noise as a giant rock fell down behind them, sealing the entrance.

Jaune looked at it for a single moment. "Okay, no big deal, I'll just use _Terrakinesis_ to open it back up.

Jaune placed one hand against the stone.

The stone refused to shift.

"Well, shit."

* * *

"Okay, okay, let's not panic. Let's take this nice and calm. We're stuck inside a cavern, miles away from anyone, and the one thing I do have to get us out isn't working. Right."

"Jaune?"

"Okay, step one, figure out why _Terrakinesis_ isn't working. Is it my magic, or is it the stone itself?"

"Jaune?!"

"Once I've figured that out, we can move onto figuring a way out of here. There has to be another exit, or maybe even a way of removing the stone-"

"Jaune! There are Grimm crawling out of the ceiling!"

Finally, Jaune actually managed to snap out of it, Blake's warning eradicating any amount of prior thought from his mind and giving him a focus.

There were a mix of Grimm pouring from the pockmarked ceiling, small holes proving to be far more fearsome than originally anticipated as both dog-sized Deathstalkers and slightly bigger, spider-like Grimm cascaded down the walls.

Why did it have to be spiders? Arachnae was the exact name, according to _Observe_.

Jaune acted like many people would in his exact situation, and primed a _Lightning-Infused Mana Grenade_ , tossing it into the nearest cluster of arachnid Grimm, watching as electrical arcs fluxed between chitinous limbs, the air already full of the scent of burning Grimm-flesh. Not a pleasant scent, especially in these much closer quarters.

Blake opened fire as well, and Jaune was thankful for her support, keeping them off his back as he tried his best to clear them out.

It was seemingly to no avail. Even with how small these Grimm were, they weren't dying as easily as a Creep the same size would. They were tough, covered in thick chitin and chittering menacingly.

He switched up his tactics, a cast of _Mana Blast_ knocking the closest into the back and sending any that weren't in that first rank stumbling backwards.

"We have to clear the first floor, right?" Jaune shouted, and whilst Blake didn't respond, that was fine. He knew she was there, but he had also been asking a rhetorical question.

He knew he had to clear the first floor. The question was, how did they do that? Just kill everything, or was there something else to it?

Jaune didn't know, and that was a problem. If he did know, he'd be able to sort this situation out.

And yet somehow, Jaune had an idea. He didn't know how he had the idea that he had, but he had it.

"Blake! We need to get into the center!" He shouted, already pushing his way towards it, a conjured _Mana Field_ keeping the Grimm at bay as they snapped, bit and stung the glowing dome of Mana as he strained to keep it up.

Blake stuck close behind him, even as his _Mana Field_ flickered, parts shattering just as fast as they reformed, and she kept up her shots, rounds puncturing chitin and leaving black splatters on the stone ground as Jaune forced his way through.

They were swarming over the top of the field, now, almost completely covering them, and Jaune raised his other hand, distributing the Mana through both, as if it might help maintain the structural integrity of the field.

"Jaune, we're being swallowed up! If you have a plan, now would be a good time!"

Beneath his feet he could see the markings that had stood out to him earlier, and he positioned himself atop them, one foot within each of the concentric circles. "I hope this works how I think it does!"

Despite the fact that he only had a feeling it would do what he was hoping it would do, a feeling backed up with no evidence or anything of the sort, the feeling was coming from the System itself. It had to work. Otherwise, well…

The moment Jaune affixed both feet in place, he felt a surge of power flow through his body as the runic symbols around the concentric circle carvings glowed a brilliant white, and Jaune could feel his Aura flux and stretch.

He closed his eyes, still pushing Mana into the _Mana Field_ , and then he exhaled in one sudden breath, and with it came a pulse of pure white Aura that escaped from his body in a bright flash, lighting up the cavern like a bolt of lightning as it hit the outer edges, leaving ashes in its wake as the small Deathstalkers and Arachnae disintegrated.

Jaune dropped the _Mana Field_ , letting out a sigh of relief as he slumped to one knee. "Ow."

Blake stood shocked for a single moment before the chills subsided, turning to her team leader. "Is that a new skill?"

Jaune shook his head. "No… it's this place. Those markings. I think I'm just as confused as you are."

No notification popped up, and Jaune noticed that somewhat-important fact, drawing Crocea Mors. "We're not done yet."

"Jaune, there's no-" Blake interrupted herself, turning to face the entrance as Jaune did the same, his _Sixth Sense_ lighting up like he was staring at a bonfire.

The rock that had slid down in front of the entrance shifted slightly.

Jaune aimed his empty hand at it.

It shifted again.

Blake pointed the barrel of Gambol Shroud at the rock.

Eight legs unfolded from the underside of the rock.

Jaune swore loudly as what he'd once believed to be a rock rotated to face them, eight glowing red eyes staring beadily at the two of them, chittering menacingly.

"Blake, what is it with Menagerie and spiders?" Jaune asked, preparing a _Mana Lance_ in his hand.

Blake suppressed a shiver. "I'd almost forgotten. I spent so much time in Vale I'd almost managed to suppress these memories."

The spider-Grimm twisted around and began climbing onto the ceiling.

 **[Epic Arachnae]**

 **[Rare Grimm (Bestiary)]**

 **[HP: 51,300/51,300]**

Jaune barely managed to process the information when the arachnid spat a globule of sticky webbing towards the two of them, and he quickly dove out of the way, _Rolling Recovery_ assisting him as he arrived back on his feet and flung the _Mana Lance_ , watching as it carved through the air and pierced the bone plating on the Grimm's thorax, causing the spider to release a pained cry that would haunt his mind for the rest of his time in Menagerie, though if he couldn't kill this thing that might only be the next few minutes.

Blake used her semblance to avoid a second spray of webbing that Jaune could practically feel heat radiating off of, and the two began a game of cat and mouse, though it was more apt to a game of spider and fly as the eight-legged Grimm continued to try and trap them, firing blast of web after blast of web, coating the floor of the cavern in sticky, incendiary webbing.

Jaune never stopped firing at the thing whenever he got the opportunity, but it wasn't often. The Arachnae was deceptively fast as it skittered across the cavern ceiling, spitting at the two.

It was just lucky they were fast enough to dodge, but they were running out of clear ground.

"Blake, we might be able to make a break for the entrance-" Jaune began, only to watch in morbid amusement as the Arachnae spat a large ball of burning web that effectively blocked up the entrance. "Never mind!"

Jaune needed to hit this thing hard, and he really had only one idea.

His typical solution for high damage would hopefully work.

The hastily-cast _Mana Tether_ only just clipped the Epic Arachnae, tendrils of Mana wrapping around and attaching to the skeletal-plated thorax, and Jaune had a split-second to consider his options before he decided.

"Electrus, hit it!"

The crystalline golem-like elemental formed within an instant, clinking, sparking crystal arms aligning and the yellow glow lancing outwards in a _Stormbolt_ that hit the Arachnae and torched it, shockwaves of electricity causing the spider to twitch and spasm as it dropped from the ceiling and landed upside-down, legs quickly folding inwards as they lost tension, already the smell of scorched Grimm-flesh filling the air even more, until it was of an intoxicating thickness.

That was a long cooldown time before Jaune could bring Electrus out once more, his prior testing indicated that it would be at least twenty-four hours or so, but Jaune would happily admit it was worth it. The Arachnae was dead and fading, despite the fact that the cavern lacked what could be feasibly called a steady airflow.

Already Blake was hacking away at the burning web that covered the entrance, and Jaune drew Crocea Mors, his free hand covering his face as he helped slash away at the web.

They broke through with a cloud of smoke and a lot of coughing, but the fresh air was more than appreciated, even if they were covered in more blackened Grimm ash than they'd hoped for.

Whilst Blake hacked up a lung, Jaune plunged his hands into the seawater and rinsed his face, already turning to face the new series of notifications that had triggered.

 **[Hallowed Bay: Floor 1 Cleared]**

 **[A chest has appeared in Floor 1!]**

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[Dungeon Crawling]**

 **[Clear the first floor of a Dungeon.]**

 **[Reward: Citrine Chest Key]**

 **[Encounter Complete!]**

 **[You've gained 4,548,775 XP, 15,048L, 2 Epic Arachnae Chitin, 1 Epic Arachnae Gland, 5 Grade VII Gravity Dust Crystals, 1 Grade V Energy Dust Crystal!]**

 **[You've leveled up 3 times and gained +15 Stat Points!]**

 **[Achievement Unlocked!]**

 **[Additional Slaughter: Kill a Grimm from any DLC (Bloodsport, Frozen Wastes, Bestiary, Burning Sands, Fallen Kingdom, Dusklands)]**

 **[Claim Reward!]**

Jaune slumped onto his back. "I really hate spiders."

* * *

 **Well, I finally did it. We have dungeons now. I guess you could say I 'caved'. I'm not sorry for the pun, either.**

 **I've been workshopping dungeons for a little while, and they're still a work-in-progress, especially concerning chests, layout and other things, but the basics exist, so I'll just work the rest out while I write them, that'll probably work best.**

 **In other news, we finally get to see a proper custom Grimm, other than the Shai-Hulud and the Stymphalian, which existed long before I'd developed the idea for the 'DLC', which I still find entertainingly dumb. To be honest, I'm pretty sure EA is like 1 step away from having real-life DLC anyway.**

 **Like I said before the beginning of the chapter, I apologize for this one being a day late, I hope it doesn't happen again but we'll have to see what my life holds in store for me, I guess.**

 **Anyways, I'll move straight into reviews for this week!**

 **roting-CORPSE: Completely unintentional reference, I assure you. I don't know if it's noticeable yet, but the Elementals all share one naming convention. It's also not a very smart naming convention.**

 **Pharos30003: Thankfully it's cooled down this week, though Tassie sounds pleasant this time of year. From what we've seen of Menagerie on the Remnant world map, I'd have to say that it doesn't seem like it, but I suppose the south-western tendril would be like an attached Tas, or maybe the north-western island.**

 **Exiled Soul Nomad: It's a little of column A and a little of column B at this point. Still, progress is progress.**

 **typhonyx: That's actually something I've got a plan to address, as soon as I get it finalized. It might not bring them up to Jaune's level, but it'll be an interesting little moment for both story and improvement.**

 **Nagisa Tr: I did make Cinder a ridiculously high level in comparison to Jaune for that reason. Everything is as balanced as I can possibly make it, within reason. Of course, sometimes there are things I overlook, or just completely miss by accident. Like the fact that Stormbolt, on it's own, was nearly 50k damage without buffs, because I'd typed the wrong number in for the multiplier. Oops.**

 **kitsune of darkfire: I didn't actually know that. That might be because in Australia jelly is made of sugar crystals and gelatin, and that's pretty much it. Maybe some flavoring and food coloring, but that's pretty much it. Jello, I guess it's called. It's just been a cavalcade of errors on my part.**

 **TheB: I still really need to either play or watch a playthrough of FF7. Though if I had 100 hours to spare, well, I wouldn't be so late on chapters :/**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: What? A shapeshifter? No way, that'd be too easy to predict.**

 **Sperance: The idea of a Systema Alt story where Jaune just flirts with literally everything that moves absolutely tickles my fancy, not gonna lie. I might write that as a little side-story when I'm trying to break down the immense amount of writer's block that hits every now and again.**

 **IHateGenericCereal: I'm going to try and get both Predator and Sandstorm some 'screen'-time soon enough. Jaune's just gotta go shopping first.**

 **ZHsteven: Hey, let's not joke about those bastards. I lost my best friend to a drop bear in '07. Dangerous buggers.**

 **captaindickscratcher: Not gonna lie, that's a great name. Also, I stated pretty early on that there would be no parties, simply because I dislike the idea, and managing that many stat distributions would be the death of me. Also I'm pretty sure that Nora is the wisest of all the main eight.**

 **armentho: As an epilogue it could work, if the story carries itself in that direction. That depends on how I end this, and that's a whole thing I'm definitely not going to get into. Also people are just not going to let the Knightshade go, are they :P**

 **IcyStream: Menagerite; It tastes like salt and Grimm!**

 **jedimasterb10: Sometimes I wish we could unify release dates. Having to wait until 2020 for Death Stranding on PC is unfortunate, because I'm gonna be flat out next year, and probably more broke than I already am, cause I've got to get Cyberpunk 2077. At least I managed to scrounge enough to get the Master Chief collection for PC. 2 Weeks before Reach bby!**

 **razmire: Well damn, you're definitely paying more attention than I am half the time. Sometimes I just write a sentence because it sounds cool, not because I'm actually thinking it through. Usually works out though, I guess it's just luck on my part and cleverness on yours.**

 **Drakon Hunter: Excellent question. I have no idea, I haven't thought that far ahead. Maybe? It depends on how I decide I want Ozpin and the Maidens' magic to work, and that's still a little up in the air.**

 **Guest: I disagree, I'm pretty sure it's just a really, really small and cheap pizza. Bite-sized pizza? Damn it now I want pizza.**

 **Guest: Should I just start labeling every chapter with NO HAREM at the start? I'm pretty sure I tagged the relationship in the description.**

 **Steelrain66: Hey, glad to have you back with us, and I'm glad you like it so much! You aren't the first person to mention Solo Leveling, so I finally caved in and checked it out. It's good, but it's definitely got a few issues. I've noticed that so many of the 'gamer' type stories, fics, comics, manga and manhwa all focus entirely on being power fantasy first, story second and game third. I've never seen anything quite like what I decided to do, where the majority of the story is decided by gameplay, including randomized loot drops and other typical-game stuff. Not that it's a negative, I've just always wanted to see what a real popular story could do with something like what Systema has. I'm glad you recommended it, though, it was a good read, at least as far as I've gotten.**

 **Whew, that was a lot. Thank you all for leaving reviews, I appreciate it!**

 **I have a Pa Treon if anyone feels like stopping by to support me, I definitely appreciate any support you want to give, monetarily or not, that's up to you.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	65. Not-Quite Skinny Dipping

**Sorry about another late chapter, especially considering this one is a little shorter than usual. The past couple weeks have been problematic at best, so it's been difficult to find time to sit down and write, especially considering I'm elbow-deep into another System Rework on top of the chapter. Nothing significant that would effect what's already happened, story or mechanic-wise, more just some incentive for Lien to have a use, as currently it is rarely, if ever, really used in any way. Just a heads up on that little update.**

 **Couple things that I've been working on have popped up in this chapter, so you get to see what I've had prepared for only a short while, and some stuff that has been sitting in the spreadsheet since the beginning, so enjoy!**

 **Thanks again to my Patrons Maxstroid, Fittzym and Justas Kondrusevicius for supporting me this month, I really appreciate it!**

* * *

On the bright side, they weren't injured.

Sure, they were covered in Grimm ash, mentally scarred from the exposure to possibly the worst kind of Grimm, and technically they'd lost what they had assumed to be a child, but at least they'd cleared the first floor of the dungeon.

Clouds, silver linings, that whole thing.

Of course, optimism didn't mean all that much when the thought that he would have to go back inside, and even delve further, was the thought at the forefront of his mind.

Though the small silver key that he was twirling between his fingers was definitely some kind of incentive, a glittering yellow gem that looked to be some kind of quartz embedded at the end of the handle.

That was just the quest reward, too. There was the as-of-yet-unknown reward from the achievement that he had to investigate.

Jaune slumped onto his back, staring at the sky, or more accurately, the floating notification that hovered ever-so slightly in front of the sky. He reached out, tapping the hovering 'claim reward' button that almost seemed both tantalizing and menacing at the same time, and he was provided with his reward.

 **[You have claimed the reward for Additional Slaughter!]**

 **[Skill Acquired!]**

 **[** _ **Ensoul Skull (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you can imbue a Grimm Skull with Mana, summoning a powerful version to fight against. Costs 600 MP, 1 Nigredo and a Soul Orb, where the type of skull dictates what kind of Grimm, and the Soul Orb determines the tier of Grimm._ _ **Level MAX.**_ **]**

Oh. Well then. That was definitely a thing.

Not something for today, at least, but definitely something to keep in mind. It was a use for some of his Grimm Skulls at the very least.

Another thing to keep in mind for the future, he supposed.

His train of thought led him along from that point and back to his original thought.

"Blake, we have to go back in there."

Blake sighed in response, which he'd been expecting. If he wasn't supposed to be the responsible team leader he'd have done the same thing.

Doing her best to rub Grimm ash from one of her feline ears, Blake turned to face him. "I know we have to, but I really don't want to."

Jaune nodded sagely. "Same."

Unfortunately, neither realistically had any other choice. At least, not a choice that would keep them on the moral high ground.

Which, of course, meant that Jaune led the way back into the cavern, the now almost-empty first floor of the Hallowed Bay.

Which was, coincidentally, devoid of anything that had been in it previously, aside from the two Hunters.

What was there was a chest made of a dark wood, yellow gems studded along the surface, a gleaming silver lock on the latch, just sitting out in the middle of the cavern, atop the runes carved into the floor.

"Huh."

Well, it certainly drew the eye, that was for sure. The idea of a chest, sitting inside a cleared-out dungeon, and the key in his hand?

It was so insanely video-game-like that Jaune felt like he had all that time ago, waking up that one morning. Which was to say a little confused, but overall rather enthusiastic.

Jaune took a cautious step closer to the chest, quickly activating _Observe_ , just in case. He wasn't about to trust this thing, especially if his semblance decided to create some kind of Mimic Grimm like from Grimm & Grottos. That wasn't something he needed or wanted to deal with.

 **[Citrine Chest (Tier 2 Chest)]**

 **[Locked]**

 **[4 Item Rolls Remaining]**

Jaune hid his relieved sigh, kneeling down onto one leg and tenderly inserting the key into the lock, a gentle twist decoupling the shackle and releasing the lock, and Jaune watched in mild shock as the key, once used, simply snapped, pieces melting away into nothingness like suddenly evaporating mercury.

Despite the fact that the key's sudden evacuation of reality caught his attention, he found it difficult for anything to divert his mind from the contents of the chest, and so he placed one hand on each side of the curved lid, heaving it up until it sat at a perpendicular angle from the base of the chest, and he stared into the murky blackness that lingered within the chest, like a cloud of entirely-localized dark fog.

Jaune looked to Blake, as if to ask her opinion, and Blake merely quirked an eyebrow in response, so he took that as some kind of consent and stuck his hand into the chest, a hearty gulp accompanying his actions as he was worried that he might lose his hand.

Not that losing his hand was all that big a deal to him, at least, he'd regenerate it, but that didn't mean he wanted to experience a pain he'd nearly managed to forget, at least, for the time being. His current line of work had a close relationship with severe injuries.

Jaune's hand, splayed and currently deeper into the chest than he'd expected it to go, suddenly touched something, and he grasped it, reaching out and withdrawing it.

 **[Sand]**

 **[A commonly found material made of broken down rock and other crushed materials, such as silica.]**

 **[Acquired 28!]**

Jaune was not off to a good start. "Sand? We risked our lives for sand?!"

Despite the fact that Blake was equally frustrated, she wasn't planning on showing it, instead acting as, once again, the voice of reason. "To be fair we were coming in regardless of the reward."

Stowing the container of sand in his inventory, Jaune sighed. "I know. It just feels a little… pointless, you know? A quest reward, big enemy, dropped a chest, the whole shebang… and then just sand. Well, there's still three more things, but seriously. Sand."

Blake let out a non-committal 'mmhmm', to which Jaune translated to say 'I've stopped listening to your inane ramblings about sand', so he reached back in, fishing around the murky shadow inside the deceptively-sized internal of the chest, fingers brushing against the second of four rewards.

This time the reward was far smaller, in that it wasn't a container of any sort, but instead a small handful of raw gemstones, glittering green.

 **[Uncut Emerald]**

 **[A gem of lush green, still embedded in rock.]**

 **[Acquired 5!]**

"Okay, that's a lot better than sand."

They weren't cut, as evidenced by the name, but the name also gave a clue that Jaune could, in fact, cut the gems, if he had access to the right tools. Which, back in Vale, he did, but out here, in the Menagerian wilds? Not a chance, unless Hallowed Quay had a workshop with jewellery tools. He doubted it.

Inventorying the Uncut Emeralds, Jaune reached back inside, this time wasting no time in grabbing the third item.

 **[Mithril Ore]**

 **[A chunk of silver-blue ore used in the creation of Mithril.]**

 **[Acquired 5!]**

Now that was an interesting find. Jaune had never heard of Mithril before outside of a game-like context. "Blake, I think I've just discovered a new element."

Jaune had once thought that Blake couldn't disbelieve anything more the first time she heard it than the time he'd told her his life was a video-game. Now, of course, he knew that to be false.

"What?! Jaune, what are you talking about?"

Jaune held up one of the chunks of silver-blue rock. "It's called Mithril."

"As in the ancient, mythical metal Mithril?" Blake asked, catching Jaune off-guard.

"Yeah? How'd you know?"

"Contrary to popular belief, I don't just read-" She stalled for a moment. "I read a wide variety of topics."

"Nice save."

She glared at him.

"Back to the topic at hand, uh, I've discovered a new element, now what?"

Blake ceased her glare, instead swapping her expression to one of practiced disinterest. "What do you mean now what?"

"What am I supposed to do about having a new element in my hand?"

Jaune could practically see Blake's facade slipping. "Is this really the time to be considering that?"

Jaune put the ore in his inventory, muttering an apology. "It's just not everyday someone discovers a new element."

Blake's eyebrow gave a single twitch that she steeled herself against. Turned out if you spent enough time around Weiss, you pick up certain mannerisms. Who'd have guessed.

Jaune was already fishing around for the final item, and despite her earlier attitude, Blake couldn't help but be interested in what was remaining.

 **[Hearthstone]**

 **[A rectangular stone with a crystalline inlay, it feels warm to the touch. Pushing Aura into it will return you to the entrance of the current dungeon. Only usable in dungeons. Single use.]**

"What's that?" Blake asked, and Jaune read the description aloud, twirling the object in his hand as he did so.

"This is actually pretty useful," Jaune uttered, once he'd finished. "At least, in emergencies."

And it was, at least, in the situations he was imagining. Sure, he only had one use of the thing, but that was more than nothing, at the very least.

It could, theoretically, save a life, and that was worth its weight in gold. Or, well, it had the potential to be. It was all a kind of very complicated potentiality.

Jaune could've sworn he had a point, but he couldn't quite pin it down, so he abandoned the entire train of thought, instead pocketing the Hearthstone and stepping back from the chest, only to watch as it simply melted away much like the key had, the puddle of chest evaporating in a near-instant.

It was a strange thing to watch, that was for sure. Especially considering the bulk of the chest had been made of wood.

"How did that…" Blake nearly delved into the logic behind whatever it was that powered Jaune's semblance, but the blond-haired teen shook his head. It just wasn't worth questioning.

That way, as he'd said time and time again, lay only madness.

"Okay," Jaune began, finally taking the time to properly look around the first floor. "What's next?"

"We push on? We agreed that if it was too much we'd pull back, but we seem to have handled the first floor just fine, if a bit messily," Blake answered, surprisingly more verbose than usual, but Jaune chalked that up to the black-haired faunus having to take on the responsibility of being the reliable team member.

That was usually Pyrrha's job, but in her absence someone had to step up, and there was no way anyone would ever let it be Jaune. Nothing ever seemed to go the way it should when he was the reliable one. Surprisingly, that wasn't the System's fault, Jaune had always had a knack for getting into trouble.

"Okay, but… where's the next floor?" Jaune asked, peering at the ceiling. "If we have to squeeze through one of those holes I might be a little screwed. I'm not as lanky as I used to be."

Which wasn't entirely true, but he stuck by the statement all the same.

He stepped away from Blake, scanning the ceiling, and Blake watched through her periphery as Jaune took one too many steps away and disappeared from view.

"Jaune!?" She called out, already heading in his presumed direction, when she heard the sounds of splashing, coughing, and choked-back cursing.

"Jaune, are you alright?" She asked, dropping to one knee next to the hole Jaune had fallen in as he waded in dark, murky salt water.

He spat out another mouthful of water. "Bad news, I gasped when I fell in and swallowed like a bathtub-full of this crap. Good news, I found another floor."

Blake stared at the water. It stared back. She swore.

* * *

Contrary to popular belief, Jaune could not breath underwater as of yet.

Sure, he could hold his breath for a little longer than the average person on account of his Aura-reinforced physique, and he could probably hold it even longer due to the System, but he had no feasible way of breathing underwater.

Also, he had no summons that could fight underwater. Or breathe, either, but for them that wasn't as big a problem. It wasn't like they died, only became unavailable for a little while.

That wasn't to say he didn't have a potential summon who could potentially help with the situation, though he suspected it would be more of a scouting solution than a solution to his aquatic airflow issue.

Not that there was anything wrong with that, he thought as he took Blake's offered hand and found himself half-scrabbling half-yanked out of the watery hole and back onto somewhat-webbed stone.

Despite the fact that Blake looked like she was having a mental breakdown about her potential future, Jaune figured she'd sort that out on her own, gently urging her to follow as he stepped outside the cavern once more, already reaching into his inventory for the item he'd been considering only moments before.

He found it with ease, withdrawing the Epic Sea Feilong Gill and taking his other hand to the stone, already using _Terrakinesis_ to carve the imagery he was now intimately familiar with.

He laid the gill on the stone, applying possibly the most expensive Soul Orbs he had to what was now a pile, the two Grand Soul Orbs gently clinking against one another as he took a step back.

Blake had plenty enough wherewithal to step back even further than Jaune, closing her eyes as the brightness overcame the typical daylight like a thousand-lumen lightbulb in a dark room, until suddenly neither of the Hunters were blinded.

Instead, there stood, or rather, lay, a long draconic serpent covered in white scales and golden membranes, a small pair of clawed arms near the midsection of what was the serpent-like body.

Jaune spoke the summon's name aloud, announcing it to the world like what had just happened was the most natural thing. "Hello, Jormungandr."

No matter how many times Blake saw it, it was still an astounding sight.

The two watched as Jormungandr quickly slithered into the water, settling down with a relaxed expression, gently resting his head atop the stone, where Jaune reached out and gently stroked his snout. "Glad to have you with us."

With the sea serpent summon settled in the sea water, Jaune checked the notification that had triggered.

 **[You've unlocked a new Perk!]**

 **[Gilled:** _Your connection with the soul of a Sea Feilong gives you complete, permanent water-breathing._ **]**

"You've gotta be kidding me. When I said I needed an aquatic scout I didn't mean me!"

Blake turned a curious expression towards Jaune. "What happened?"

There was a number of ways Jaune could explain, but he stuck with his more typical method. "I can breath underwater now."

Blake actually laughed, and Jaune couldn't help but send a glare her way. "At least you'll fit in with the aquatic Faunus in Kuo Kuana now?"

Jaune sighed. "I'm not complaining, you know? I just keep getting suckerpunched out of nowhere by unexpected things."

Blake regained her composure somewhat. "Well, better you than me. The waterbreathing, not the suckerpunching."

Now that made Jaune laugh. "It would be a bit of a cruel irony."

"I realise that I've asked this a lot recently, but what's our next step?" Blake asked. "It's been changing quite a bit, and the closer we get to achieving it the further it seems to get."

"You ride Shirdal back to Kuo Kuana and tell your father about everything that's happening here. Tell him to do whatever he needs to do, tell him about what I can do, if you have to. I'm going to stay here and keep delving deeper. I don't know how far down this dungeon might go, but I know that the entire second floor is full of water. If I can find out what happened to the people from Hallowed Quay, all the better."

He said it with authority he didn't feel, but he was better at being convincing than he'd expected. That or Blake really, really didn't want to go for a swim, which he could understand.

At the very least his teammate showed some concern for his well-being. "What happens if you get in trouble down there?"

"That's what that Hearthstone is for. If something goes horribly wrong I can just warp back up. Just make sure that no one shoots me if you're up there and I suddenly appear."

"That would certainly be an unfortunate way to die. Are you sure that Shirdal can maintain his form that far from you?"

Jaune hadn't thought about that, but instead of saying that, he shrugged. "What's the worst that could happen? We fell further in our initiation."

Well, Blake couldn't disagree with that. "It's probably better if I leave sooner rather than later, then. You're going to want some reinforcements at some point, I imagine."

"It wouldn't go amiss, that's for sure. The more firepower the better, I don't think that any of the Grimm in here are going to go down without a fight, so I don't think spears and pistols are going to cut it. If Kuo Kuana has a tank you might want to bring it."

Jaune summoned Shirdal and Blake slung herself aboard the Griffon, keeping a firm grip on one of the saddle's handles. "I'll keep that in mind. Good luck, Jaune."

Jaune gave Shirdal a quick pat as the summon began to take off, carrying Blake into the sky as he turned back to Jormungandr, the sea serpent lifting his head out from where it had semi-submerged.

"Alright, buddy. Let's get you upgraded a little, huh?" Jaune said, splaying one hand and activating _Soul Harvest_. Jormungandr watched as Jaune began the creation of a Greater Soul Orb, taking a few moments before it formed in his palm, and he tossed it towards the Sea Feilong summon, jaw snapping down and crushing it underneath powerful jaws.

And he grew, larger, sharper, stronger. Jaune could see it happening, muscles and tendons becoming more defined, claws sharpening, wings growing further in size.

Jormungandr had grown in size and strength, from Minor to Greater in a few moments.

"I suppose I'd better test out this water-breathing perk now. This is going to be weird."

There was a moment of uninterrupted silence before the splash of displaced water sounded as Jormungandr dismissed himself, leaving Jaune to make the walk back into the cavern alone, which he did without complaint.

Making sure that everything aside from Crocea Mors was stowed in his inventory, his coat included, Jaune slipped into the watery hole on the inside of the cavern, quickly casting _Candlelight_ and hoping that the floating light was waterproof, Jaune submerged himself.

 _Candlelight_ was waterproof, it seemed, as the light followed him down, and illuminated what was a not-so-insignificant tunnel filled completely with somewhat-murky dark water, just barely illuminated by his magic.

Jaune realised he was holding his breath. An old habit, he supposed. One he was going to have to break sooner rather than later, preferably.

So, he swallowed his fear, swallowed his worry, and took a deep breath.

He swallowed water, too, but for some inexplicable reason, it didn't seem to reach his lungs, instead a balanced amount of breathable air did instead. He exhaled, bubbles departing from his nose and floating quickly surface-wards, popping once they breached the surface tension of the water.

He didn't know how far this aquatic passage went, but he was about to find out, and he began his presumably-long swim, headed for whatever his next destination was with powerful strokes that carried him deeper and deeper.

He'd be amiss if he said he wasn't at least slightly worried.

* * *

 **Like I said, shorter chapter. It's a prelude to the next one which should hopefully encompass a bit more content. At least the revelations of some of the Dungeon mechanics have been unveiled. All the chests work on a randomized loot table that I wrote up, over a thousand lines of code to get it all running, but it's actually percentage-weighted as opposed to an equal chance for everything, which is really nice. Certainly makes it easier to balance certain items.**

 **Jaune didn't really get anything ground-breaking from the Citrine Chest, but I'll give a little insight onto it. There are five tiers of chests, from lowest to highest; Crimson, Citrine, Opal, Cobalt and Damascus. Each tier has it's own reward rarities and weighting, but many of them share similar rewards. I wanted a lot of ways to get access to 'skilling' materials, such as ores and other such materials along those lines, but there are plenty of rarer goodies in there too. Giving them a cost to open was a difficult choice, but I think this way is more balanced. Now I just need to edit and adjust the Grimm drop tables to have keys in them, which means I've got to figure out how to use checkboxes in Python, but that's a me problem.**

 **Now, I'll move into reviews, as usual.**

 **Sperance: Well, unsurprisingly you got all the DLC names right. They were originally a throwaway joke that I figured actually made sense with the expansion of Remnant in canon and Systema, with the Fall of Beacon, so I kept them around. Bloodsport is Mistral, like you said, though the name mostly stems from Pyrrha and her reputation as a tournament fighter. Figured a place like Mistral would consider that so important, and seeing as the tournaments mostly stem from the idea of gladiatorial combat, Bloodsport seemed to fit the best. It also ties into a little headcanon of mine that Mistral runs fighting pits in the lower levels of the kingdom, which may or may not come up at some point.**

 **Steelrain66: Many of the custom Grimm I've added have come from more typical animals, such as, for example, the rhino, but I do have a few that exist with heavy mythological inspiration. I wanted to give them a feel that they'd fit in, and the Arachnae is one such example. I'm pretty sure we'll see a spider-Grimm in canon any day now.**

 **armentho: It's difficult to write witty dialogue between a male character and a female character without it coming off as flirting, is what I've discovered while writing Systema. If I were to do a Systema Alter, which I may end up doing at some point, it'd most likely be focused on a different character, or even a transposed System into a different series. That's honestly a long ways away at this point. I'm 65 chapters in and we're barely into book 2. Also at this point I've had to give up on posting to Spacebattles, I just don't have the time or motivation to cross-post without much use, seeing as I constantly forget about that forum. It's honestly just better if I focus on ffnet rather than diverting my attention, and that means I can keep my quality as high as possible without having to worry about other things. Personal preference, mostly.**

 **FrostyChops: Much of the loot may be randomly-generated, but there is a piece (possibly more) that is a guaranteed reward, as with many of the Dungeons I'm working on. They're called Artifacts, and that's all the information I'll give out at this time.**

 **DuplicateUserName: Jaune as a bard is an entertaining idea, honestly. In canon he's not particularly skilled with a sword, but he seems to have a knack for being inspirational, so I can see it fitting him to a tee. The healing also fits, coincidentally.**

 **Nagisa Tr: The DLCs exist as a method of me separating what is primarily canon content and what is original content, like custom Grimm and locations. It was originally a joke, but the names stuck in the spreadsheet, so I figured I'd make them a little more obvious. They act more like free content updates than anything else. Yes, I realise that free content updates for a piece of fanfiction is me taking the whole video-game thing way too seriously, but hey, that's practically my brand at this point.**

 **Exiled Soul Nomad: Perhaps. I guess you'll have to wait and see :P**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: I had a good old-fashioned laugh reading this :D Yeah, you absolutely called it, even if I hadn't intended for it to play out that way when I started writing it. It was originally going to be just a rock that Jaune mysteriously couldn't terraform, but the Arachnae occured to me and I immediately remembered the vast majority of LoZ dungeons I've been through in my time playing the few games I have managed to emulate. And as for Dawn, well, don't rule anything out. It could really be anything.**

 **BigBoiShugoki: If by ROTSH you mean Rising of the Shield Hero, then no, I didn't. I hadn't started watching that until a couple days ago, and I'm only about 4 episodes in so far. Though I can see some similarities. All coincidence so far.**

 **Uday Sra: Sorry to disappoint, but sometimes I just don't have the time. Especially considering that 4k words is actually quite a bit of effort to do on a near-weekly basis with all the background effort I have to put in to get everything working. I do want to try for slightly larger chapters, but 4k seems to be a good fit so far for content whilst still meeting the deadline, most of the time.**

 **jedimasterb10: I blame you for the state of my wallet and my sleep schedule. Turns out completing the entirety of Jedi Fallen Order on Master is not only really difficult, especially for a guy who has next to 0 experience with Soulslikes, but doing it in one long stretch without sleeping is just not great. Even worse is not realising that there are actually ways to increase your stims. So, that was fun. That final boss fight took me nearly three hours of repeated attempts.**

 **HAIL KING DELIROUS: It's coming, I promise! You may have to hold out for a little longer, as Jaune has no real easy way to make a significant amount of Grand Souls Orbs as of currently without investing a hefty amount of time, but at least I hope you like Jormungandr. The Shai-Hulud summon is coming soon (tm).**

 **razmire: Spiders, man. I've lived in AU for so long I'm used to 'em, but that doesn't mean I'd want one as a pet. And you may or may not be right, you'll have to wait and see.**

 **Tsu no mumei: I'll have to see about a Wendigo-Grimm, I might be able to squeeze it in, and it'll definitely appear in the spreadsheet if it shows up in canon, but as for the potential rewards, like I've said the chests are randomly generated, but your idea for a grappling hook/line launcher thingy has been added to the spreadsheet as an artifact, cheers for the idea. I'm always a fan of mobility, especially for Jaune.**

 **Kazotskye: I've made a couple adjustments over the past number of chapters to skills, and the idea of a failure chance is a good one. It'll mean I have to write a quick script to calculate failure/success, but that's not difficult at all, I've been meaning to convert my damage sheet to a python program anyway. Cheers for the suggestion!**

 **And that about does it for this week! I need to go to bed, I've been awake for nearly 48 hours now, but hey, that's my fault.**

 **If you'd like to contribute to my writing in any way, I have a Pa Treon, which has a number of rewards for donation amounts, including your name at the top of every chapter, and access to the complete spreadsheet! It's not necessary, but it is extremely appreciated!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	66. Going Swimmingly

**Another late chapter, turns out implementing the whole Dungeon thing has been a complicated thing to do. It would've helped had I have had the whole mechanic fully fleshed out BEFORE I added it, but that's the price I have to pay, I guess. Oh well. At least I've got most of it working now, if a little mishmashed together.**

 **Thanks to my Patrons Maxstroid, Justas Kondrusevicius and Fittzym for supporting me this month, your patronage is incredibly appreciated!**

* * *

The deeper he swam, the more his mind thought that the shadows were waiting Grimm, hoping for him to swim past without noticing only to leap out and grasp down on him, tearing the flesh from his body and devouring him completely.

He needed to stop watching bad horror movies.

The darkness was just that, darkness. Shadows cast by his _Candlelight_ , nothing more.

It was more disconcerting to be left alone than it was to be attacked, he realised. Being left to his imagination down here, still occasionally forgetting that he didn't have to hold his breath, it was doing work on his mental state.

The whole water-breathing thing was still a tad bit weird. Consistently forgetting to breathe was starting to become a problem, and not just in the typical way it would be a problem.

Sure, not breathing came with a list of issues, but one that he only really discovered by experiencing it was that it was so damn frustrating. He knew he could breathe underwater. He'd done it before.

And still his body occasionally slipped back into old habits, and anytime his attention was focused anywhere else, he found himself suddenly without oxygen in his lungs.

He'd only just started getting the hang of remembering without direct focus, but it was quite literally like learning how to walk, or, well, breathe.

He hadn't been down here all that long, but it was labyrinthian in nature. He'd swam his way into over a dozen dead ends, frustratingly enough, and it looked almost as if he'd be swimming into a dozen more before he found whatever it was he was looking for.

And wasn't that the crux of the whole situation. He didn't even really know what he was looking for, not really. He could guess, he could look for clues, some kind of sign to point him in the right direction, but it was just that. Guesswork.

He had no concrete evidence that anything he was doing was the right thing to do, especially with how murky it was down here beyond the light cast by his submerged _Candlelight_.

So really his only option was to keep looking.

His original idea of using Jormungandr to scout had been flawed from the get-go, considering the sea serpent was far bigger than these tunnels, and as entertaining as it would be to get his new summon stuck in what amounted to a poorly designed natural plumbing system, it wasn't his greatest plan.

Jaune kept swimming, getting deeper and deeper, the water getting darker and darker as _Candlelight_ began to get less and less effective the further he progressed.

His attention caught something, a shadow that didn't quite look like the rest, and he swam closer, bringing the _Candlelight_ to hover just next to him, altering the shadow.

Not a dent like the rest. This was a hole, possibly what it was he was looking for. The only problem was that it was a bit of a tight squeeze. He was already weighed down by his shirt and pants, and whilst he'd stowed the majority of his clothes in his inventory, Crocea Mors was most likely going to get stuck. At the very least he'd have to put it away and take it out once he'd gotten through, but the idea left a sour taste in his mouth. Ever since he'd gotten his semblance he'd been loath to part with this weapon, as ingrained as it was in his own mind.

He did anyways, attempting to place the sheathed sword in his inventory.

It worked, in a sense. It split the weapon in two, the shielth and the blade becoming two separate items, stored in individual slots. Nothing to worry about, thankfully, but there was a mild moment of panic.

With that taken care of, Jaune braced himself, placing both hands against the edge of the hole and pulling himself in, a mild amount of vertigo quickly nullified by _System Mind_ as he briefly forgot which way was up, before he squeezed through, _Candlelight_ following closely behind as he quickly regained his bearings.

He'd thought it was just an opening with a small hole as an entrance, but instead it was something more.

It was oddly reminiscent of the tunnel the Shai-Hulud had dug underneath Mountain Glenn, perfectly round and gigantic, but where that had simply plunged through the ground on a horizontal plain, this was almost completely vertical, and full of sea water.

It was so deep and so wide, in fact, that even with the light from his floating semi-companion, it was nearly impossible to make out any detail on the cylindrical wall, only rough shapes.

Like, for example, about twenty feet below and a quarter-rotation away from him was a small outcropping with a strange rippling bubble around it.

Well, if that wasn't a clue to his next step…

Jaune swam closer, sticking close to the wall, even if he didn't have any evidence to the contrary. He didn't want to swim just out in the open, it felt… strange. Unnerving, in a sense, even if there wasn't anything there.

He closed in on the weird bubbly outcropping, and as soon as he was near he could feel a strange suction pulling him closer and closer.

Naturally, he tried to swim backwards. Anything down here was a threat, and that sort of thing was definitely not on his side, as far as he could tell.

Unfortunately for Jaune, the more he swam, the closer he got, and the stronger the suction became.

One foot breached the bubble, and it was all over, Jaune could no longer resist as it pulled him in completely, sucking him straight through and spitting him out on the outcropping with a wet splat as he suddenly found himself inside an air pocket.

 **[You have arrived at Floor 2!]**

 **[Shortcut to Floor 1 has unlocked!]**

Well, at least Jaune was done swimming through endless tunnels for now.

* * *

 **[Quest Created!]**

 **[Dungeon Crawling: Expert]**

 **[Clear the first five floors of any dungeon!]**

 **[Reward: ?]**

Man, Jaune hated when the quest rewards were hidden. It was a rare occurrence, and it bothered him. He wanted to know, damn him for being too curious!

He only had one way to find out, he supposed. He'd just have to clear four more floors.

Of course, that meant that he'd have to clear this floor, and that thought was what brought him to the present.

Where was he?

Well, he was presumably on the second floor of the dungeon, but where specifically? Was the second floor a single room, like the first? Was it a maze, like the tunnels he'd travelled through, the ones he'd originally assumed to be the second floor? Or was it something else entirely?

He could continue to ask himself questions, or he could go and track down answers. Jaune chose the latter, withdrawing Crocea Mors from the two slots it took up, drawing the blade from the shielth and moving his ever-present _Candlelight_ through in front of him, illuminating the passage that lead away from the bubbled outcropping.

Water ran through, whatever mechanism that kept it from all pouring in not completely perfect, and Jaune could see where lichen was growing in patches on the rocky surface in the small streams and puddles left in the wake of wherever the water was headed. The passage wasn't completely flat, instead tilting down on the slightest angle.

Manually moving the _Candlelight_ to float alongside him as he moved, Jaune wished he had night-vision. He doubted anyone would be selling those night-vision goggles from movies in Menagerie, considering the whole 'faunus have night-vision' thing, so he'd have to figure out another way at some point.

Following the passage further along, Jaune could see it widen out, like many other places down here, and he moved through, one hand staying on the handle of Crocea Mors, ready to draw it at a moments notice.

When Jaune stepped into a damp cavern similar in size and scope to the first floor, he wasn't surprised. When he noticed that all the black boulders were instead sleeping Ursa, he was slightly surprised. When he realised that they weren't sleeping, and instead were simply dormant, stationary and unmoving, eyes glowing yet making no movement, he was very surprised.

"What the…" He whispered to himself, waiting for the moment the trick would end and they would lumber towards him. It didn't come.

He moved quietly between them, trying to not accidentally disturb the peace, looking for whatever it was he was looking for.

Gods he wished he knew what he was doing.

Jaune looked at the closest Ursa as he moved past it, noting the lichen that had been growing on the walls, ceiling and floor of the cavern in patches had grown up and over the Ursa, patches of murky green plant matter splattered haphazardly across the dormant Grimm.

Jaune kept moving, headed for the other side of the rocky chamber. He hadn't managed to set off whatever it was that would wake the Ursa-

Jaune's recently re-equipped boot planted itself straight into a patch of lichen.

Many, many heads turned in his direction. Jaune swore, bringing Crocea Mors up to bear- er, up to face the awakening Ursa as they rose to their paws.

Jaune backed up a step, pointing his blade towards the nearest lichen-laden Ursa, though he was quickly finding himself surrounded.

Jaune really only had one option left, and that was to engage in combat.

He opened the fight with a horizontal swing, blade cleaving into the blackened flesh of the nearest Ursa, cutting deep enough to stall its attack as he twisted, spinning with his weapon to deliver a slash into one that had closed the distance behind him.

The Ursa, all level 60, took the hits with impressive resilience, only backing down after successive strikes, but there were too many for Jaune to keep up with, and despite the strength and dexterity he wielded Crocea Mors with, he just couldn't keep them from advancing on him.

So, instead of buckling under the pressure, Jaune leapt into the air, a half-flip allowing him to place his feet on the roof of the chamber, _Surface Walk_ activating as he affixed himself in the best possible place to begin firing into the assembled lichen-covered Ursa.

He couldn't stay in that spot for very long, lest he get one hell of a headache as all the blood rushed to his head, but he hoped he wouldn't need to as he opened fire, tossing out _Mana Lances_ at the Ursa beneath him, puncturing flesh and bone with the sharpened magic projectiles, and one by one the Ursa fell, leaving only the lichen where they disintegrated.

It didn't take him too much time to clear the cavern, and he found himself quickly dropping to the floor once more, resting in the knowledge that there were no more Ursa in the vicinity.

That fact was quickly confirmed as a notification popped up, momentarily startling him.

 **[Hallowed Bay: Floor 2 Cleared!]**

 **[A chest has appeared in Floor 2!]**

 **[You've gained 3,780,000XP and 33,000 Lien! You've acquired 18 Inert Dust, 22 Ursa Claws, 5 Ursa Pelts, 3 Ursa Skulls, 1 Grade II Gravity Dust Crystal, 2 Crimson Keys and 1 Cobalt Key.]**

 **[You have leveled up and gained +5 Stat Points!]**

Well, he appreciated that, for sure. The level was nice on it's own, as were the Ursa drops, but probably the most interesting to him were the keys. Without them, he couldn't open any of the chests that seemed to appear whenever he cleared a floor.

Speaking of which.

Jaune moved, scanning the cavern, and it took a little bit of time before he could actually make it out in the dim light.

Sitting there was a chest of dark wood and crimson framing, a bronze lock clamped down on the latch, keeping the contents secure.

Well, he had a key that would fit that lock, at least.

He closed the distance, bending down onto one knee and inserting the bronze-and-crimson key into the lock, giving it a quick twist as both the lock opened and the key disappeared, fading from reality.

He reached in and quickly withdrew everything he could feel, inspecting them as he withdrew them.

2 Hearthstones, 8 Mithril Ore and 24 Iron Ore. Nothing he hadn't seen before, but it was nice to have nonetheless.

What was somewhat important, moreso than some extra supplies, was the third floor opening.

It meant progress, first and foremost, but it also meant that Jaune was closer to getting better rewards. He had to assume that was what was in store, alongside more challenges.

He put his new acquisitions in his inventory, already heading back towards the entrance to this particular floor.

It meant he was going to have to go for a swim again, which he wasn't particularly fond of, as it meant he'd have to unequip a bunch of stuff again, and then most likely fight whilst being dripping wet, as he'd nearly begun to dry off at this point, but it was a null point.

He'd have to do it regardless, so he shrugged away his resignations, already stripping down to the bare essentials, leaving only his pants to protect his modesty, not that there was any real reason to do so, stowing his gear inside his inventory as he pushed through the bubble-like barrier, immediately feeling the pull lessen, shifting into more of a push this time as it effectively ejected him out into the watery column, slowly but steadily.

He could see beneath him another opening, and he swam towards it, powerful strokes allowing him to cover the distance easily as it snagged ahold of his form, pulling him through the barrier and into the corridor that led to the next floor's chamber.

Jaune had absolutely no idea what was awaiting him in this room, but he was about to find out.

* * *

Of all the things Jaune was expecting, this was certainly not one of them.

The third floor chamber was more like a dome than anything else, aside from what amounted to a deep chasm in the center, leaving only a ring of rocky ground that traveled around the edge.

That wasn't exactly strange, but what was strange was the fact that one side was completely walled off, leaving him only one direction to travel to get to what he assumed was the other side.

There was also a giant floating orange orb in the center of the chamber.

That was probably the strangest part, come to think of it.

Jaune continued to peer around the wall at the orange orb, a confused expression gracing his face. He wasn't entirely sure what it was, but the light it cast across the chamber was at least quite pretty.

His _Candlelight_ was a bit more of a harsh blue light, artificial like a fluorescent bulb, but this was warm, and he could feel it as well as see it. The room was warm enough to begin to dry him out far faster than he'd been expecting, though to be fair that wasn't very much faster than anything else.

Jaune took a deep breath, a shrug, and then stepped out. There was really only one way to figure out what the orb was, other than a form of lighting.

The orb's light intensified in an instant, and a beam of orange energy blasted out, tracing across the stone walls and scorching them black as it hit Jaune in the side, even though he'd almost retreated back behind cover.

It hurt, and not in the way a small burn hurt.

Instead it felt like his entire nervous system had lit aflame, and he barely managed to prevent himself from stumbling back into the figurative, and literal, line of fire.

It had sapped him of half his Aura in just that single moment of contact. Jaune definitely did not want to experience that again.

He needed his shield, but even that might not be enough. The question was, could he hold a _Mana Field_ that long? It was a long run, and he'd presumably be in sight of the orb the entire way, and considering how much damage it had just done…

He'd just have to move very, very fast, and make sure to keep his field up the entire time. It was a tough ask, especially considering that A; he'd never done anything like that before, and B; once he attempted it, he'd have to commit to it completely. It wasn't like he could get halfway and just turn back. This was an all or nothing plan, not that he had any better ideas.

Maybe if he took a proper amount of time he could think of something, but he was getting impatient.

"Screw it," Jaune said aloud, raising one arm. His _Mana Field_ projected around him, following him as he moved, and he braced himself, ready to dash out of cover.

Unsure of how the _Mana Field_ would handle with a _Flash Step_ , Jaune realised that this test would most likely be either painful, or he'd complete the chamber. A deal of absolutes, so it seemed.

Not wanting to waste anymore Mana, Jaune _Flash Stepped_ out from behind the stone wall, and the beam from the orb was already tracking him even as he moved, and the moment it made contact with his _Mana Field_ , which luckily did follow him, he could feel his hold on the projected field immediately slip.

He had only a few moments before this beam of energy would bypass all of his defenses and incinerate him, and so he made a snap decision.

"Platinus! Harden!"

His voice was strained, but his Metal Elemental responded in an instant, forming in front of its master, accompanied by the sound of grinding metal.

Jaune felt his _Mana Field_ break at the same moment, and Jaune winced, closing his eyes.

Nothing came, no pain, no burning, no incineration. Which was lucky.

He opened his eyes once more, and what had been a chamber filled with warm orange light was now a sizzling, dazzling light show as the beam cascaded bright orange light across the entire chamber in flashes.

Platinus was absorbing the energy, dispersing it throughout the Metal Dust that formed its nigh-indestructible body.

It couldn't hold the _Harden_ skill for long, of course, but Jaune was more than happy to take advantage of it while he still could, Platinus moving in conjunction as the two traversed the stone ring, finally reaching the other side, where Jaune could slip back into some cover, out of vision of the orange orb of pain.

The moment Jaune was clear, Platinus slumped, dispersing into mist as it unsummoned itself, nearly at the breaking point.

Jaune was incredibly thankful for the Elemental, there was no way he'd have managed to complete this floor without it, especially not with how hasty he'd been.

He'd honestly not expected it to be such a harsh beam, even with the amount of damage it had done on that initial strike.

Of course, him reaching the other side had prompted a couple things. First was the notification that the fourth floor had opened, and that a chest had appeared on the third floor. Which, from the fact that there was a chest directly in front of him, he probably could have figured out on his own. Another Crimson Chest, from the looks of it. Thankfully he still had a key left.

Another thing was the groaning sound of stone grinding against stone, and Jaune looked to the side, noticing that a new entrance-way had opened, leading back out to a barrier that most likely lead back out to the flooded column.

Jaune would head that way in but a moment, first he had to unlock his second Crimson Chest of the past two floors. He was hoping for something a little more interesting than what he'd gotten out of the first, but he wasn't going to be picky.

He unlocked the lock with the disintegrating Crimson Key, and reached deep within.

18 Copper Ore, and a small red potion in a stoppered vial.

He quickly _observed_ it, curious.

 **[Erythraean Vial]**

 **[A vial of red liquid that restores 50% of total HP. Only usable in dungeons.]**

Jaune let out a low whistle. That was definitely appreciated, if just for emergencies. At the very least it lowered the likelihood of him having to use a Hearthstone in an emergency, which he could certainly appreciate.

He sort of wished it was for Aura, considering his AP regeneration wasn't the strongest thing currently, and he'd lost nearly half of it in this chamber, but he'd take what he could get.

The copper ore wasn't the greatest reward, but it was still something. He wasn't going to complain, but he definitely had a feeling that the Crimson Chest was the lowest of the chest tiers.

Jaune stepped back from the disintegrating chest, now that it was empty, and moved through the newly opened passage. Whilst this floor hadn't taken anywhere near as long as the previous floor, it had certainly been more dangerous, and Jaune was somewhat worried about what was in store on the next floor.

He was hoping four of five wouldn't prove to be so much of a challenge, but then again, with the way his luck had been going so far…

Jaune pushed through the barrier, feeling it eject him back into the flooded column for the nth time, and he searched around for the newest opening.

Lower down he could see another opening, but this one was without a barrier, which was certainly intriguing.

It was also the only opening he hadn't already been inside, so he swam towards it nervously, peeking around the corner.

He could make out a faint glow at the other end, but it looked just like any of the other passages. Safe, or as safe as he could be down here.

Jaune swam through the passage and into the chamber on the other side, momentarily taken aback by the stunning beauty of the fourth floor.

Bioluminescent coral lined the walls, floor and roof, glowing a multispectrum rainbow that refused to dull or even be comprehended, and Jaune couldn't do anything to change that fact, in awe at the sight.

He was in awe up until a mass of scales rammed a large horn into his side, puncturing his Aura completely and tearing through his flesh like a harpoon, turning the water a misty red with his blood.

Jaune let out a watery scream of pain as he turned to look at what had gored him and was currently carrying him through the water.

 **[Elder Meregrimm]**

 **[Grimm, Level 61, Rare]**

Jaune placed the flat of his hand against the horn that was jutting from his side and quickly cast _Mana Blast_ , hoping it would somehow tear him free, as he could not only feel his HP slipping away, but he could see it too, with how red the water was getting.

It worked, but not in the way he'd expected. The blast sent the Meregrimm careening sideways, throwing Jaune free from the horn with a literal gut-wrenching noise, as Jaune felt his insides become outsides.

His HP was down to less than 200, his AP was gone, and he wasn't regenerating anywhere near as fast as he needed to be. Jaune was very clearly in a lot of danger.

He didn't have any of his weapons, either, and he doubted he could swing Crocea Mors underwater anywhere near as effectively as he could on land, so he was down to just spells. He couldn't even drink the Erythraean Vial he'd just acquired, on the account of him being underwater.

And he was on the other side of the chamber from the entrance, thanks to being carried along by the Meregrimm's horn.

Jaune could see the Meregrimm doubling around, having recovered from being thrown off-course, that red-tinted horn bearing down towards him once more, and he reacted.

He just hoped the chamber was big enough.

Jormungandr formed in front of Jaune, two clawed arms grabbing ahold of the Meregrimm and stopping it just short of the horn puncturing his white scales, and his head came down, jaw widening as it opened wide.

Jormungandr bit down on the center of the Meregrimm with surprising force, and Jaune could see the water become blackened as the dolphin-like Grimm squirmed, attempting to free itself.

Jaune took advantage of the Meregrimm being trapped by swimming up behind it and putting all the time and Mana he could spare into charging up possibly the biggest _Mana Pulse_ he'd ever made, putting just over a thousand MP into it before releasing.

It hit the Meregrimm in the side, between the gap in Jormungandr's jaws, and effectively vaporized the oceanic monster, turning it into a cloud of black smoke that quickly dissipated in the water.

It was after the Meregrimm was dead that Jaune allowed himself to relax, and that came with the feeling of incredible agony as his wounds, still healing slowly but steadily, became very apparent.

Jaune gritted his teeth hard as Jormungandr closed the admittedly small distance between the two, delicately brushing his head against Jaune's arm, the one that wasn't currently holding his large wound closed.

Jaune was more than happy to have some form of physical contact, and the fact that Jormungandr was trying to comfort him was a nice gesture for a giant sea serpent that just fit inside the large aquatic chamber.

This, Jaune supposed, seemed like as good a time as any to read his newest notifications.

 **[Hallowed Bay: Floor 4 Cleared!]**

 **[A chest has appeared in floor 4!]**

 **[You've gained 2,604,875 XP and 8,052 Lien! You've acquired 21 Inert Dust, 1 Elder Meregrimm Fin, 1 Elder Meregrimm Horn and 1 Opal Key!]**

 **[You have leveled twice and gained +10 Stat Points!]**

Jaune watched as Jormungandr moved his head, snagging the chest between his arms and quickly turning back to Jaune, presenting it to the still-bleeding teen.

Jaune figured that he might as well find out what was in this chest, and from the looks of things, considering the key he'd ended up getting, that this was an Opal Chest.

The lock was made of a golden material, as was the majority of the key, and both the key and chest had a large opal studded into it, the chest on the center of the lid, just above the lock, inside the pale wood, and the key had one imbedded into the handle, though it didn't last very long as he unlocked the chest, reaching within with his free hand.

Out of the chest he pulled a number of items.

 **[Opal Chest Rewards: 2 Hearthstones, 4 Uncut Onyx, 12 Adamantite Seeds, 3 Caeruleum Vials, and 57,347 Lien!]**

 **[A title has ranked up!]**

 **[Gold Banker has ranked up to Platinum Banker!]**

 **[All Lien Drops +50%!]**

Well, that was nice. Shame Lien couldn't buy him more HP, at least, he wasn't aware of how it could as of this moment, but still, it was nice to have a ranked-up title, even if it wasn't one he used often.

The other things intrigued him, too. The Hearthstones were always nice to have, of course, and the Uncut Onyx seemed interesting, but it was the Adamantite Seeds and the Caeruleum Vials that really grasped his attention.

Jaune ran his hand down Jormungandr's snout once more as he dismissed the summoned Sea Feilong, leaving him in the pretty-yet-empty bioluminescent chamber, and Jaune began the swim back towards the flooded column. God he hoped whatever the next chamber was wasn't full of water.

Or Grimm, for that matter.

As Jaune traversed the water, he began reading.

According to the description, a Caeruleum Vial was effectively the MP equivalent of the Erythraean Vial, restoring 50% of total MP when drank, but it only worked in dungeons. The more interesting of his recent acquisitions was the Adamantite Seeds, which apparently could be harvested once fully grown to get Adamantite Ore.

Jaune wasn't one-hundred-percent sure on what Adamantite Ore was, but his best guess was the mythical metal of Adamantine, much like the mythical metal of Mithril, of which the ore he already had a bunch of. Jaune was definitely breaking new ground.

Now all that was left was for Jaune to go into the fifth floor.

First, though, Jaune sat himself down on the lip of the outcropping, legs dangling into the flooded column until he tucked them underneath, closing his eyes and taking a deep, watery breath.

Jaune began his _Meditation_.

* * *

 **Well, that was a thing. Three floors, two combat encounters, and a puzzle/combat encounter! Designing interesting dungeons is harder than I'd thought it would be for Systema. At least the random rewards is proving to be completely random. Two Copper Ore roll back to back is unfortunate, but that's the way the game goes, I guess.**

 **Anyway, I'll dive (get it) straight into reviews!**

 **razmire: I'd say he'd about half to two-thirds the size of the canon Sea Feilong in his Greater evolution stage. If he was to be made Beastial, I'd say they'd be about equal size, but that hasn't happened just yet. Maybe, it depends if people want Jormungandr to be Beastial.**

 **armentho: Oh, trust me, those aren't the only summons left, I can guarantee that. Hydrokinesis is planned, but it has a few requirements that just haven't been met yet, so unless that happens, I doubt it'll show up in the next chapter. Of course, depending on what drops from what things, we'll have to just wait and see.**

 **jedimasterb10: Man, I've 'SPUN THE WHEEL' so many times for these past few chapters that I've lost all reason. I have a new appreciation for statistical luck now, at the very least.**

 **SirenAtlantica: Not gonna lie, that made me laugh real hard. I hadn't even thought of that, but with salt water and electricity, well, that's just a recipe for disaster waiting to happen.**

 **Tsu no Mumei: Suggestions will never be annoying, trust me. It's honestly an honor that people take the time to come up with ideas, I'm always interested to hear what people have to say, be it good or bad. Unfortunately, you probably won't see the Mithril in use for a little while, as it has a required Crafting level to even smelt down into ingots.**

 **fictionelement777: I have a number of custom Grimm waiting to appear, for when we reach certain regions, but as for enemies from alternate universes such as FF, D1/2 and others, I'll have to see. It depends on whether or not I can 'Grimmify' the enemy, as I really don't want something that isn't human, faunus or Grimm as an enemy if I can help it, but if I can, I'll try. I don't want to overpopulate the list, and especially not the drop tables, though.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Well, that's one hell of a scenario. A shame I didn't get the opportunity to use it, and I probably won't, partly due to the fact that I just can't stand writing underwater combat, but it's definitely interesting. Honestly, the whole Sand being used as a Terrakinesis conduit is really inventive, and was definitely not what I'd added Sand as an item for.**

 **Uday Sra: Thank.**

 **Nagisa Tr: This has actually reminded me of something I'd been meaning to add. It's not something Jaune will get in Menagerie, but I do have a plan for some kind of portable workshop. Actually, it probably won't appear until either Mistral or Atlas, depending on how it plays out.**

 **hirshja: You diss the sand, not knowing it's true power :P. In all seriousness, Sand is actually kinda useful for Crafting training, but that's as much as I'll say on the matter.**

 **Sperance: You dirty, filthy, naughty, entertainingly-minded individual you. I'm not that kind of writer. Well, as of yet, at least. This is rated M, I wonder exactly what I can get away with. Also, thank god Jaune has an infinite inventory, and no encumbrance. That'd go down poorly.**

 **Guest: Hey, if you've caught up, great! I'm going to agree with you, if it were a normal team. Of course, with Jaune, it's a bit different, and his team sometimes end up as collateral damage. I've wanted to play Ozpin as a slightly more merciless character, even if he may not appear it, but this is a man who's lived many, many lives. At some point the connection to humanity has to fray somewhat, much like Salem's appears to have.**

 **That's it for this week + however many days I missed! I may or may not have another chapter out for Friday, it depends on whether or not I get it written, but I am going to try!**

 **I have a Pa Treon if you ever feel like supporting me and my writing, and doing so will get you access to a whole array of background stuff, such as the raw google doc of Systema, the entire, uncensored unholy spreadsheet and your name at the top of every chapter! I'd really appreciate it!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	67. Bat v Man

**An actual chapter on a Friday, what is this, witchcraft?**

 **Thank you to Maxstroid, Fittzym and Justas Kondrusevicius for supporting me this month! I really do appreciate your support!**

* * *

"You are making good progress."

His eyes snapped open, searching for the source of the voice. Expecting the dark water of the flooded column, he was instead greeted with a somewhat-familiar landscape of infinite whiteness, stretching impossibly far.

"I am?" Jaune asked the disconnected voices, searching for their source all the while.

"You are. Your connection is the strongest of all."

"My connection? What do you mean?"

The voices echoed from every place and nowhere all at once. "You will know when you know."

Well, that wasn't deliberately vague.

"Why am I here?" Jaune asked, standing up from his seated position.

"To succeed."

Jaune sighed internally. "Can you be any more vague?"

"Perhaps."

Jaune could practically taste the humor in the voice. "You've been a great help. Really."

There was no response, but he could see the whitescape folding in on itself, steadily darkening, from white to silver to grey to black in both an instant, and an infinite amount of time as his entire perception warped and shifted.

Jaune opened his eyes for the second time.

At least he knew where he was this time, underwater as he was.

Jaune half-floated half-clambered to his feet, eyes firmly fixed on the barrier-clad entrance to the fifth floor.

He wasn't going to let weird visions or mind-trickery mess with his objective.

* * *

The pacing was going to drive him mad, but he'd be damned if he didn't understand why she was doing it. "Blake, dearest, I'm sure your leader is fine. If what you told me is true, we have no idea of the true depth of this… dungeon, as he put it?"

Blake turned to her father, her normally calm expression contorted into a slight frown. "I know, but it's been hours. He should have come back by now, unless he's either died or gotten greedy."

Ghira placed himself against a boulder, letting out a slow sigh. "And which do you think it is?"

Blake's frown deepened. "He's too stubborn to die, so my guess is he's continued down, and forgotten about the whole plan of him surfacing to help inform us."

Ghira allowed himself a moment to smile slightly. "That seems more heroic than greedy, but I can understand."

Blake shook her head. "It might seem like that, but when you learn about his semblance, well…"

She cut herself off. Despite Jaune's blessing to do so, she hadn't told anyone about her leader's semblance. She imagined that would change when he had to explain the whole thing to her father, but it was as it was.

Jaune would probably be more than happy to explain to her father, to be honest.

In a single split-second their conversation was cut off as a noise drew not only their attention, but also the attention of the assembled group of Menagerie's guards that had accompanied the chieftain.

Blake moved quickly, withdrawing her weapon in an instant and stalking towards the coastline from the rocky outcropping they'd been positioned on.

There, the sound again. It sounded like someone… screaming?

The sound was promptly followed up by the telltale noise of loud wingbeats and much louder screaming.

Blake and the accompanying faunus watched in shock and awe as Jaune was catapulted through the air, chased by a very large bat-like Grimm.

"Is… is that a Balayang?" Ghira asked, a stunned expression on his face.

Blake didn't dare take her eyes off of the spectacle that was about to play out in front of her, but she had to ask. "Aren't Balayang really rare?"

Ghira nodded. "And really dangerous."

Despite herself, Blake couldn't help but sigh. Apparently, there were three absolute truths in life: Death, taxes and Jaune managing to find some kind of incredibly dangerous situation without fully preparing himself for the consequences.

* * *

Jaune had to admit, this was not his brightest moment.

It had all started when he'd swam down to the next floor, passing through the barrier and then having to spend what felt like a long while walking through the winding passage, with seemingly no end.

He'd then arrived at the fifth floor's chamber, but chamber was definitely an inaccurate descriptor. It was more like a massive cavern, the ceiling featuring a number of gaps, stone passages that lead up and out to the evening sky above him. Jaune hadn't realised how late it had gotten, he'd had to have been down here for a while.

That wasn't quite as important, anymore.

He'd wandered in, his guard up, searching around for whatever hostility may be within the chamber, and for a moment he thought all his worry had been for nothing.

Then his _Sixth Sense_ had triggered, and he'd rolled to the side to avoid the sweeping claws of what looked like a gigantic bat Grimm that swept through the air, nearly grabbing him. It had been remarkably close, his senses almost as useless as they had been underwater.

He turned, hand splayed, tracking the movement of the Grimm, and he quickly _observed_ it.

 **[Malignant Balayang]**

 **[Grimm, Level 63, Rare]**

 **[HP: 107,100/107,100]**

Jaune paled somewhat. He only remembered one other Malignant Grimm, and that was the Beowolf from the clearing by Beacon. The Malignant Beowolf that had nearly killed him in a single strike, and barely seemed fazed by any of the attacks he and his friends had sent its way.

If this bat-Grimm thing was anything like that, Jaune was in trouble. It was a full five levels ahead of him, and he was alone.

Well, as alone as he ever really could be with his semblance.

Speaking of which.

Jaune rolled again, sheathing Crocea Mors and shifting from sheath to shield, just in case. He had an idea, he just needed a moment to bring it to fruition.

A single chance, a break in the constant sweeping attacks that continued to nearly catch him off-guard.

Jaune took a look at the Balayang once more, trying to see if there were any visible weaknesses.

It was this second glance that made Jaune realise something critical was missing from the Balayang.

It had no eyes.

Instead of eye sockets in the Grimmbone skull, like quite literally every other Grimm he'd gone up against, this one featured a flat plate of bone that carried up to the black-furred, immense ears.

So that meant that, while it was blind, it relied completely on sound to track him.

He was going to have to temporarily delay his previous idea so he could execute his newest idea before he could cease said delay.

Even despite himself, Jaune couldn't help but sigh. Plans upon plans upon plans, and none of them were very good.

Jaune hoped to any and all Gods that this would work.

Jaune stood completely still, staring straight at the approaching Malignant Balayang. It neared, closer and closer.

Jaune activated _Phase Shift_ , and felt his entirety cease corporeality.

The bat-like Grimm's claws passed straight through Jaune without so much as a snag, and the Balayang swerved hard, somehow managing to look confused.

Jaune deactivated _Phase Shift_ , realizing that he only had a few moments before it would know he'd tricked it. He could only hold his breath for so long, and being completely silent was far harder than it sounded. Well, he knew what he meant, and that was the important part.

Jaune stopped his perfect silence, beginning once more his moving and breathing, quickly calling forth the first summon that he needed.

Glacius formed in front of him, one crystalline arm raised to take the swipe from the Balayang as it passed by, even as Jaune enacted what was effectively step two.

"Glacius, _Blizzard_!" He shouted, already darting backwards. His ice resistance from the Bearskin perk was going to help him, but not so much that he wanted to be at ground zero for what was coming.

Glacius began to shimmer, the wind picking up around the Elemental as flakes of ice began to splinter off the crystalline golem, and Jaune could already feel the temperature lowering significantly as the _Blizzard_ began to get stronger and more intense.

It was far too low a level a skill to actually do any damage, Jaune knew, but it would hopefully still be enough to slow the Balayang down enough so that he could actually hit it with something, preferably a _Mana Tether_ followed up by a _Mana Cannon_.

His plan never reached step three as the Balayang, with the chill in the air making the cavern begin to fill up with snow, flew in so fast that Jaune didn't even have time to move.

It snagged his shoulders between massive claws and lifted him off the ground and into the air, going further and further up and out of the chamber.

The Balayang was nearing the top, going at an incredible pace, when Jaune cast _Phase Shift_ once more.

A severe miscalculation, result of his instant near-panic at the thing carrying him out, one Jaune was going to be very quick to regret.

Instead of him being dropped like a rock without momentum, Jaune found himself suddenly tumbling head over heels through the air, and he couldn't help but let out a lengthy shout of both surprise and fear as he continued to flip.

"Shirdal!" Jaune shouted, in a panic, his voice doppling as he flipped. "Help!"

The Beastial Bound Soul of Shirdal the Griffon was quick to form, and Jaune managed to snag one of the saddle's grips, smacking face-first into Shirdal's side.

On the bright side, he was no longer flipping through the air.

On the other hand, which was not at all the opposite to the bright side proverbially-speaking, the Malignant Balayang was headed right for him.

Step three had been a complete failure. Time for a new plan.

* * *

Okay, Jaune needed to think really god-damned quickly now, his life was on the line.

The Balayang was close, practically rocketing towards him, much faster than Shirdal, and despite its blindness there was no way it couldn't hear both himself and his Griffon. Flying was not a quiet thing, especially not when the thing listening relied entirely on sound to effectively see.

Jaune twisted on Shirdal's saddle, splaying his hand and firing a _Mana Flak_ out towards it, hoping to at least distract the Grimm that was getting far too close for comfort.

The Mana-filled projectile burst in the air, scattering shrapnel through the air, denting against black fur and white plate as the Balayang effectively tanked the spell without so much as a visible scratch.

Not a great start to Plan Two: The Sequel, but it was at least a start. Better than he could say for some of his plans, at the very least.

Shirdal, even flying at top speed, was no match for this speed. The Balayang was closing in no matter what Jaune did.

His previous attempts to slow it down were flawed, they hadn't worked.

Conventional magic wasn't working. Luckily, that wasn't the only thing Jaune had up his sleeve.

He reached into his inventory, withdrawing Telum and the quiver that came along with it, nocking an arrow and drawing back on the bowstring as hard and as far as he could pull it.

The Malignant Balayang was close, remarkably so now, and Jaune released the end of the broadhead, watching the arrow along its flightpath as it traveled rapidly, hitting the softer part of the bat-Grimm's side, letting out a trail of black blood as the beast screeched.

Good news, Jaune had actually dealt damage. Bad news, it was now very pissed.

Very, very pissed.

Shirdal just wasn't going to be fast enough. "Alcmena, Apollo!" Jaune shouted. His avian summons might be his only chance to pull this off, but it was a slim chance.

He'd have to buy them some time.

So Jaune decided to do something incredibly stupid. Well, moreso than usual.

Jaune slung Telum over his back, drew Crocea Mors from the sheath, and jumped.

It was obvious that the Balayang hadn't been expecting this kind of attack, and even as it tried to swerve out of the way, Jaune's blade carved through the thin flesh of the bat's wing.

Professor Port may have said a lot of useless stuff, but he did occasionally have something important to say. Wing clipping had been one of those, and Jaune had really been taking it to heart this trip.

Of course, reminiscing didn't matter now that he was plunging through the air. He was going to have to snag a ride.

Apollo was the faster of the two birdlike summons, and Jaune was more than happy for the black-feathered Bound Nevermore to grab his outstretched arm with one set of talons, carrying him away as Alcmena fired a burst of bronze feathers.

The Balayang, finally slowed by the damage it had sustained to its wing, rolled itself up, spinning fast enough that any of the feathers that would have hit it simply dented off the bone plating.

Jaune wasn't doing anywhere near enough damage to this thing, but at least it was slower.

Quickly and deftly Jaune clambered from Apollo's grip and onto the bird-like summon's back, activating _Surface Walk_ to stay affixed as he found himself buffeted by the rushing wind. He pointed his hand, hoping to whatever deity or deities that were out there, praying that he'd land the shot.

Jaune fired the _Mana Tether_.

The projectile fired out, hitting the Balayang straight in the exposed skull and expanding, wrapping its tethers around the head, a loud ding sounding out as Jaune landed a critical hit, much to his surprise.

Jaune wasn't done, though. He knew he could land this shot, with the Balayang tethered as it was, so he was going to put everything he had into it.

Jaune fired a _Lightning-Infused Mana Cannon_ at the tethered Malignant Balayang.

It hit, dispersing the _Mana Tether_ and scorching the exposed bone plating, dispersing electricity into the Grimm's nerves, the Balayang twitching and screeching as it began to fall, plunging towards the ocean below.

It wasn't dead, though, but Jaune was about to change that.

Taking a running leap, Jaune jumped off the back another flying summon, for the second time in so many minutes, using his Aura to launch him up high.

It was a tried and true tactic, but when you paralyzed a Grimm you wanted dead, and you were high up above it…

Jaune did a single flip, more for the style points than anything, and cast _Mana Impact_ , his feet pooling with Mana as he began his descent, faster than the Balayang, effectively meteoric as he covered the distance like a glowing orb of death.

Jaune fell really, really far, and he impacted against the Balayang just before it splashed down into the water, the force he applied pushing it that final amount of distance into the ocean.

Like a depth charge going off, the shockwave of the impact sent water up in a plume big enough and high enough that it reached the point he'd jumped from, raining down seawater on the surrounding beach.

He was thankful he could breathe underwater, because the swirling vortex kept him under, washing him around as the displaced water once again found itself level, and it was at least a minute before he managed to resurface, the self-summoned form of Jormungandr scooping him up and carrying him to the nearest land.

He was soaking wet, exhausted and his heart was still yet to stop beating a mile a minute, the adrenaline that flooded his body not seeming to want to leave.

And despite all that, he couldn't wipe the stupid grin from his face.

"You done showing off, Jaune?" Blake asked, a frown on her face as she desperately tried to wring water out of her hair.

Jaune couldn't even work up the energy to be surprised to see her, or the amassed group of guards, or even the Chieftain. Instead, Jaune took a seat on the ground, slumped backwards, and let out a laugh.

"Sorry about that. That thing was a lot tougher than I was expecting. Just… give me a second to catch my breath."

 **[Hallowed Bay: Floor 5 Cleared!]**

 **[A reward has appeared in Floor 5!]**

 **[You've gained 11,113,375XP and 33,264 Lien! You've acquired 2 Malignant Balayang Ears, 3 Malignant Balayang Fangs, 2 Malignant Balayang Pelts and 1 Citrine Key!]**

 **[You have leveled four times and gained +20 Stat Points!]**

Jaune's grin hadn't quite disappeared, and it threatened to instead reappear as he read the notifications. Sure, it had been one hell of a fight, even worse than the Meregrimm fight, simply due to the fact that he knew he couldn't take a single hit, but he'd managed it, and the rewards were worth it.

He wasn't quite sure what he was going to use the Balayang's ears for, but he had them for whenever he figured that out, so at least that was nice. He was mostly interested in the XP, if he was being honest, and the stat points that came with them.

He was up to fifty, now, which was quite a bit. He was going to spend them, too, he'd learned this lesson multiple times before.

Not right now, of course, but soon.

"Are you alright, Jaune?" Blake asked, once she'd gotten over being drenched. Which had taken only a few moments, but at least she had her priorities straight.

Jaune nodded. "It almost got me, but I managed to, er, 'break free'."

"You mean accidentally toss yourself out over the ocean?"

Jaune waved his hand back and forth in the universal 'sort-of' motion. "It's all a matter of perspective."

"Like how from this perspective it looked like you accidentally tossed yourself over the ocean."

Jaune gave Blake a deadpan stare. "I'll toss you over the ocean in a second."

"Now, now, you two. Let's not get all tied up in who did what. Arc, was it? Are you injured?"

Ghira's voice was authoritative for good reason, and Jaune found himself feeling almost like he'd just sobered up, though it was more of a recovery from his internal panic than anything else. "No, I'm fine."

Ghira nodded. "Good. Now, Blake's explained a little bit about what's going on, but it isn't all that much to go on. Can you explain it in more detail to me?"

Jaune hefted himself to his feet, checking to make sure everything he had equipped was still there as he began. "That… that's a long story. Blake, what have you mentioned so far?"

Ghira interrupted his daughter. "For the sake of my own understanding, I'd like to hear it all, from the very start."

Jaune let out a long sigh. When he said it was a long story, he hadn't been kidding. "From the beginning, huh? Alright then."

* * *

Ghira looked a little lost, which, to be fair, Jaune had entirely expected. 'Long story' was a gross oversimplification of the whole thing.

Once he'd clarified the numerous questions that the Chieftain had asked, and explained his semblance to the man for the second time in the entire conversation, Ghira had asked a question that was basically the crux of the whole situation.

"What happened to the people from Hallowed Quay?"

Jaune stood up from one of the chairs he'd formed with _Terrakinesis_ , a frown on his face. "I don't know, but I can make a guess."

Ghira's face was graced by a similar frown. "I was afraid that would be what you would say. You believe they're dead?"

Jaune nodded. "Having been down there, I don't think there's any way they could still be alive. The amount of powerful Grimm has been absurd, and that's just on the first five floors. For all we know, there's a hundred floors. It just seems to keep going deeper and deeper.

Ghira let out a sigh. "I see. For the time being, we shall return to Kuo Kuana. There are still many things left for us to do there, and I still have a meeting with Sienna Khan, though from what I'm told she's departed for Mistral only an hour or so after you arrived."

Jaune let out a derisive laugh. "How convenient."

"So it would seem," Ghira remarked. "There are things you must need, though, are there not? Blake mentioned something about picking up more supplies."

Jaune nodded. "I wasn't exactly set up to go dungeon delving when we got here. This place has got a lot of stuff that I need to figure out, and I definitely need more supplies if I'm to go any deeper."

"Then we had best depart now. I'll leave this garrison here, to make sure no Grimm escape the 'lair', you called it?"

Jaune nodded. "That's probably a good idea. You guys go ahead, I've got some stuff inside I'm going to take care of, but I'll catch up. Blake, do you want to take Shirdal again?"

His teammate nodded. "If that's alright with you. I don't really want to be walking back to Kuo Kuana at this time of the evening."

Shirdal appeared on the stone bridge Jaune had constructed, startling the guards, only for Blake to raise a placating hand as she quickly paced over, gesturing for her father to follow suit and climb aboard.

Jaune let them figure out what was happening as he turned his back to the entrance to the Hallowed Bay's first floor, instead taking a step into the ocean, summoning Jormungandr for a lift.

His destination was one of the open holes that lead down to the fifth floor, and thankfully, Jormungandr was both quick and easy to hold onto, Jaune keeping one steady hand on one of Jormungandr's spine-spikes until they arrived, where he simply jumped inside, _Surface Walk_ keeping him firmly affixed to the wall until he reached the bottom.

He was expecting there to be a chest, like every other floor reward had been so far, but as he searched, he didn't see any trace of one. The message in the notifications had been different, too, now that he thought about it.

A reward, not a chest, had appeared. What did that mean?

Jaune's searching culminated in a raised eyebrow.

"Is… is that a display cabinet?" He asked himself, stepping closer to the center of the fifth floor cavern.

It was in fact a display box of some description. A pale wooden stand with a glass case, on the inside a red velvet cushion with something atop it.

Jaune closed the distance quickly, his curiosity taking advantage of him as he neared it.

The display was locked, a small little padlock keeping it shut, made of a simple metal, and seeing as the case was made of glass it wasn't as if it was going to stop him if he wanted, but he recognized the opportunity to try and get some XP, so he reached into his inventory, pulling out the little lockpicking kit that Blake had given him all the way back in Beacon, before they'd even gone on that major assignment.

Man, those were good times.

He knelt down and inserted the lockpick and the tension wrench into the lock, fiddling with it for a few moments before he heard the telltale click, and he disengaged the lock, dropping the padlock to the side and lifting the glass lid.

He'd been so focused on actually picking the lock that he hadn't even paid any proper attention to what was in the case, but now that he looked, he became slightly confused.

So, in order to alleviate his confusion, Jaune observed the contents.

 **[XIX. The Sun]**

 **[An artifact of a long-past age, this mechanical arm is constructed of an unrecognizable golden metal and seems to use magic to connect to the mind of the wearer, offering an ability unique to the wielder.]**

Jaune couldn't help but smile to himself. He knew exactly what this relic was going to do, and who was going to use it.

Of all the places, and all the things he could've gotten. Jaune was just surprised, if nothing else. For all the problems he had with his semblance, he would never be able to truly complain about it.

These were the things that made up for all the chaos it had brought into his life.

Jaune placed it in his inventory quickly. He had one final stop left, and he wanted to get it done quickly. As much as he enjoyed being rewarded, clearing floors was a lot of work. He wanted to go back to Kuo Kuana and sleep, but first and foremost, he wanted to check what the next floor held in store for him.

So, Jaune walked back down the passage to the flooded column, passed through the barrier and swam down further, to the next floor's passage, and passed through that barrier.

He was only going to take a peek, but what he hadn't expected was for the sixth floor to be so small.

It was practically a single room, more like a walk-in wardrobe than a room, and in the center was a door made of firm steel. Jaune wasn't going to be breaking through that anytime soon.

The other side of the room, through the door, was equally small, but Jaune could see what looked like a lever on the rear wall, and just to the left of that was a Citrine Chest.

Jaune tried the handle of the door, only for it to rattle against the frame. It was locked, and Jaune didn't have a key. He still had the lockpicking kit in his hand, so he quickly began trying to pick the lock.

 **[Lockpicking Level 25 Required!]**

Or not, apparently.

"Okay, Plan B then," Jaune said to himself, placing the lockpicking kit back in his inventory and concentrating.

He activated _Phase Shift_ and stepped through the door.

Or would have, if he hadn't collided with the metal and felt a searing pain from it.

He lunged backwards, feeling _Phase Shift_ cease to function without him willing it, and he shook his hand to clear the burning feeling from it. There was no actual damage, his AP and HP were full, but he'd definitely felt it. Strange.

The door wanted him to pick the lock, and that appeared to be the only way through.

"Okay, System. We'll do it your way, I guess," Jaune spoke aloud, with a frown.

Leveling _Lockpicking_ was going to be an interesting challenge.

One that he could save for tomorrow. Tonight, he was going to hop onto Alcmena, fly back to Kuo Kuana, and sleep.

It had been one hell of a long day.

* * *

 **Man, that Balayang was surprisingly tough. I ran the calculation for its HP and had to double-check the whole script. The Malignant modifier is no joke.**

 **XIX. The Sun is one of a number of Artifacts assigned at random to many of the various dungeons, and it just so happened that floor 5 of the Hallowed Bay was the one that dropped this. I wonder who will make good use of it.**

 **Anyway, let me dive right into reviews!**

 **Steelrain66: Hey, thanks! It's really what I wanted when I started the whole summoning thing, and it's gotten nearly as big as a number of other parts of the System. The only problem I think with it is that there are so damn many now, and I'm really bad at not adding custom Grimm in without making them into summons as well. I need to start limiting myself when I add them, otherwise we're going to have over a hundred summons by the end of this year.**

 **Dragon lord Syed 101: That's something I've been having to think about. This story is, in the end, about Jaune, and I realise that breaking away from Jaune to see other characters is a great way to bring a kind of clarity to certain events, but the problem is that Ruby is so far away from Jaune right now. It's why I can break away from Jaune's perspective to focus on Blake, because she's right there with him, but if I did the same with Ruby that might bring a few issues. I'll have to think about how I want to do it without breaking the flow of the story.**

 **jedimasterb10: Man, I can't imagine having to play through 50 floors, let alone design them. I'm taking a bit more of a quote-unquote lax approach, with some rooms being skill-focused, like the sixth floor, but it's still a lot to work on, even though the Hallowed Bay has far less floors than 50. Adamantite Ore doesn't actually make Adamantium, but Adamantine. Similar, but different. Not X-Men, but D &D, if that makes sense. Still virtually unbreakable, of course.**

 **Fyr RedNight: Oh, don't you worry, I'm in the same boat. I can't stand open, murky water. Though, to be fair, I'm in Australia, and that's kind of a safety thing too. Plenty of sharks out in our waters.**

 **paradox0.5white: An interesting suggestion, one that I might have to consider. I'm not quite sure what it would really accomplish, but damn if it isn't cool to look at.**

 **Nagisa Tr: I don't mean to tease! Jaune's just getting a lot of Lien, and he doesn't have anywhere to really spend it just yet. The next chapter might change that, of course, with the incoming resupply.**

 **Sperance: I like to think that whilst the System doesn't change anything to suit the skills the user has acquired, it is still possible to complete with any build. Some builds may be more complicated, like a build revolving entirely around firearms, but it is still possible. Somehow. And, to be fair to Jaune, he did have a minor freakout when he found the Mithril.**

 **Guest: Haha, guess again! It's randomized! Even I don't know what's coming!**

 **Tsu no Mumei: Well, now he definitely can. Glass Arrows have been added as an ammo variant, cheers for that! The Meregrimm perk is still sort-of in development. It was originally the perk from the Sea Feilong, and the Sea Feilong had what the Meregrimm had, but I changed that roughly around chapter 55 or so. I'm still not sure I like what it is, but I'll definitely have it figured out by the time Jaune can actually summon it. Also Greyveil is a dope name, and the effect is actually really neat, so I might borrow a few of the elements from it and stick it on one of the currently undeveloped PACKs or Artifacts. Probably an Artifact, now that I think about it.**

 **razmire: Yeah, it really is strange. That's kind of the point. It's supposed to be a little wonky and a little bit absurd. (Also I might've, erm, 'borrowed', the idea from a couple Minecraft mods I've played in the past. Shh...)**

 **Kalbario: I sent you a PM, but for anyone else with the same question, there is a publicly-available spreadsheet for Systema that I try to keep updated as often as possible. The link is on my profile page, but I'll also list it here, just remove the spaces: tinyurl SystemaStats**

 **Guest: By all means. Like you said, I can't stop anyone, and honestly, I don't even want to. No matter what the content of it, I'm still pretty chuffed to know that people like Systema enough that they'd want to write about it. (Psst... send me a link. I promise I won't judge!)**

 **Tik71: You might very well be right about Crocea Mors. However, since then I rewrote a number of things, including the entire list of Hunter Weapons, and that's probably why it's different. Also Blake took Shirdal, not Jormungandr, so she's all good.**

 **armentho: Honestly, you said pretzel and now all I can think about is pretzels. In all seriousness, though, Jaune does need a new melee weapon, or at least something he can use in close quarters. The main problem with the randomized loot system is that it's almost impossible to guarantee anything, unless I cheat, and I really don't want to do that, as I feel like that's one of the things that keeps Systema at least somewhat more unique than many of the other gamer fics out there. As a quick clarification, Mana Sight really only works on things that Jaune can see. When we originally see it, Jaune uses it into the dark pit and sees movement, which is unconfirmed and therefore yellow, but if he can't see, there isn't anything to tag as unconfirmed.**

 **IHateGenericCereal: Well, this chapter will certainly come as a surprise! You aren't wrong when you say the random loot can fuck me over, too, there are so many things that have been behind-the-scenes issues when it comes to Jaune simply lacking certain equipment. They say limitation breeds creativity, though, so here we are.**

 **greenitricoxide345: This is going to be following AU pretty hard. With all the things that have happened so far, I'm already pretty far from canon, what with Pyrrha being 'technically' alive and Jaune being with Blake in Menagerie, but that's just the beginning. I've got plenty of plans for later down the road, and not very many of them play out the way things have been playing in canon. And hey, don't worry about rambling, that's pretty much all I do anyway.**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: I love the fact that you review like you're live-tweeting, it's such a fun little read. The reason why Platinus absorbed it instead of reflecting it is because it's not technically light, and therefore not a laser. It was more like a beam of heat. I'm glad you, and others, like the Summons. I'm always worried when I add a new one that people might object to the way they act. I realise now that the wording on the Banker title is a little misleading, I've been meaning to change that, but then you said casino and now I kind of want to keep it that way. It was meant to only affect Lien dropped from Grimm, but honestly, why the hell not. And it definitely isn't from left-field with Blake, seeing as I'd already written that part before you reviewed!**

 **Thanks everyone for leaving reviews, I really appreciate that you guys take the time to give me your thoughts and ideas!**

 **I'm unsure if I'll have a chapter out next Friday, seeing as it's Christmas, which definitely didn't sneak up on me, so have a happy holidays!**

 **I'll leave my obligatory 'I'd appreciate your support' thing out for this week!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	68. The Next Chapter Has A Better Title

**Well, it's been a great break, but I think it's about time I get back to writing and posting chapters. Glad to be back. Hope you all had a great New Year!**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid, Alvelvnor, Justas Kondrusevicius, Mark Vibadag and Fittzym for supporting me this month! I really appreciate it!**

* * *

Many of the citizens of Kuo Kuana were not accustomed to seeing giant Nevermore.

Jaune could practically feel the stares from where he was standing. Maybe landing Apollo atop the Belladonna household wasn't the greatest idea, but he was pretty tired. He'd expected most of the citizens to be asleep by this point.

Jaune had, of course, neglected to consider the nocturnal faunus. Which, to be fair, he hadn't realised would be quite so many.

He ran a hand down Apollo's beak as he slipped off his wing, letting the avian summon disappear as he dropped down from the rooftop.

Shirdal, sitting comfortably in the outside courtyard, gave a quiet squawk as Jaune landed next to him, giving the Griffon a quick scritch as he dismissed the Griffon as well. The attention he was getting in Menagerie just wasn't worth having them out for long.

"Pleasant flight?"

Jaune looked up at Blake, the girl leaning against one of the posts that supported the wooden awning.

"Yeah, a little bumpy, but Apollo doesn't have a saddle. How was yours?"

Blake shrugged. "The first one was fine, the second one, not so much. Dad doesn't seem to like heights all too much."

Jaune let out a quiet laugh, quickly smothering it. "Don't let him know I laughed at that, he's terrifying."

Blake shook her head somewhat. "Come on, you look exhausted. There's a spare room set out for you."

Jaune was more than willing to follow his teammate as she led him through the hallways to a room with the most appealing bed Jaune had ever seen.

"Get some sleep, Jaune."

Jaune just nodded. He was more than willing to follow her orders, and as Blake closed the door, the blond teen was quick to unequip his gear and practically slump into the bed.

Sleep would come very, very quickly.

* * *

Morning broke, bringing with it the dawning sun, and Jaune woke with a start, hand gripping tight on the loose sheet that he'd somehow partially covered himself with in his sleep.

He released his grip delicately. These were not the kind of sheets to treat roughly, that much he could tell, and he was a guest atop that. If he'd torn it, well, he wouldn't be proud of it.

Instead of worrying about that any further, Jaune stood up from the comfortable bedding. A sliding door led to a modest bathroom, and he quickly turned on the shower, shedding what little clothing remained on him and stepping in under the warm water, relishing in the feeling.

He hadn't exactly been 'filthy', considering the vast majority of his time had been spent underwater, but he was almost completely encrusted in salt, and it left him feeling almost like a stale loaf of bread, a feeling he was more than happy to rid himself of, with a very liberal application of household comforts.

He took an extra moment to simply soak, his mind wandering. There was a waiting notification, there had been since last night, but he didn't want to look at it.

He knew what it was already, and he was dreading what it contained.

He cut the water off, stepping out and towelling himself off, running one hand through hair that had been getting longer and longer. He was going to need to get a trim at some point, though he wasn't sure when. Perhaps he'd save it for another time, he needed to stop seeking distractions from his own semblance, and the knowledge that came with it.

"Screw it," Jaune remarked under his breath, facing the mirror and bringing up the notification.

 **[Quest Complete!]**

 **[Dungeon Crawling: Expert]**

 **[Clear the first five floors of any dungeon.]**

 **[Reward: 1 Materia Crystallum]**

Jaune wasn't concerned with that. It wasn't what he was dreading.

He waited, and then waited a moment longer.

The notification he was waiting for never came.

His eyes opened wide, and he quickly dove into his quest log, scrolling through.

 **[Hunter Bounty: Hallowed Quay]**

 **[Discover what happened to the inhabitants of Hallowed Quay.]**

 **[In Progress]**

Jaune felt a sigh of relief reverberate through his entire torso as he exhaled. If they were dead, it would have failed the quest, right?

He didn't know, but at least it was something to go off of. Better than simply believing they were all dead, at least. Better for general morale, and his own emotions.

He still had a chance, or so he thought, at least, and that was what counted.

Jaune looked at his hand, at the new item he'd received from the previous quest. The Materia Crystallum, as it was called.

It was quite strange to look at, now that he thought about it. Like a cube, of sorts, made of something he didn't recognize, little spines of various kinds of Dust spiking off in all directions.

He didn't really know what it was, and yet he did, in a sense. He could feel it's pull, a pull towards a certain part of his semblance, and it was an incredibly strange feeling.

Intrinsically, he knew exactly what this item was for, even if he couldn't quite put it into words.

There was a pull that almost felt like it was dragging his Elementals out from wherever they stayed.

Jaune stowed the Materia Crystallum in his inventory quickly. This bathroom was definitely not big enough to fit him and an Elemental, let alone all of them.

Something for his to-do list, he supposed.

His to-do list was probably a mile long, with a thousand things he'd forgotten.

Jaune stepped out of the bathroom after equipping his typical clothing, sans his coat, and withdrew Crocea Mors, both sword and shielth, placing them on his hip like usual.

There was absolutely no doubt that Jaune was stalling. Leaving the room was not what he was stalling, but going outside, going shopping for supplies…

It was blatantly obvious that many, many people here didn't like him. Some, brazen enough to pick fights with him, others content with wary staring.

That was all fine, though, he could deal with that.

It was the potential of shopkeepers refusing to do trade with him that was worrying.

Jaune opened the door to his temporary residence, stepping through and closing it behind him.

He wasn't quite sure what he was doing, in the household. Was he supposed to speak with the Chieftain, was he supposed to try and find Blake?

He decided his best option was to just go and enjoy the morning sunlight on the front porch, and so that was where he was headed.

Apparently, he wasn't alone in that idea, though he'd been beaten up by someone who appeared to be far more familiar with the terrain.

"Good morning, Jaune."

Jaune's hand found the back of his head. "Uh, morning, Mrs Belladonna."

The woman laughed gently, gesturing for him to continue out the door. "Please, call me Kali. You helped bring my daughter back to us, it's the least I can do in return."

"I didn't, though. I just tagged along, really."

He turned his head to stare out over Kuo Kuana as the bustling day began, already Jaune could see people ferrying things back and forth.

"Still, you had your hand in it, even if you don't know it. You're her team leader, right? You may have helped her realise what she wanted to do far earlier than you suspect."

Jaune let out a short laugh. "If anything, it was Blake, Weiss and Pyrrha that were helping me, not the other way around. Our early weeks were complete chaos."

Kali let out a laugh. "I can imagine. Let me guess, Blake spent most of it feigning disinterest and reading?"

Jaune couldn't wipe the grin off his face. "You know her so well."

"Then I guess, what with Blake and the Schnee girl being partnered up, you had no small amount of chaos to handle."

Jaune nodded. "Less than you'd expect, but that was mostly just in comparison to everything else I had going on. Maybe for some it might've seemed extreme, but I'm used to dealing with 'individuals', let's say. Seven sisters and all that."

Kali's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "Your mother must be one tough woman."

"She was a Huntress for a long while, before she and my father settled down in a little settlement near Vale, and raised us there. She always said the bigger the family the more the love."

Kali gave Jaune a gentle smile. "She sounds like a lovely person. I'd love to meet her."

There was a slight message hidden underneath that, and if it weren't for Jaune's significantly increased Charisma stat he never would have picked it up. He considered his words for a moment, before picking the ones he wanted.

"I'm sure the two of you would get along remarkably well. I'm sure Blake would be glad to hear that her friend's mothers were getting along."

It was a tad bit more direct that he'd really intended, but it seemed that Kali wasn't offended, far from it. Instead, she gave him a sly smile, the twinkle in her eye clueing Jaune in to the fact that she may not give that line of conversation up anytime soon.

"Well, this has been an interesting conversation, Jaune, thank you for bearing with my ramblings. Would you care for some breakfast? I was just going to wake Blake and Ghira up and make some, you're more than welcome to join us."

Jaune nodded with a polite smile. "I'd like that, thank you. To be perfectly honest, I am a little hungry. Not much time to eat when you're underwater."

Kali led the way back inside the house, Jaune following her. "So I heard. Ghira told me all about what he understands of your semblance, I hope that isn't a breach of trust. I promise not to speak to another soul about it, if that makes you feel any better."

Jaune had already expected as such. "I'd appreciate that. It's safer for everyone involved that the details don't get out there anymore than they already have."

"I do need to ask, your semblance doesn't give you any ability to… manipulate people, does it?"

Jaune stalled for a moment, both physically and mentally, before he decided on honesty. "It does, I'm afraid, though I haven't ever used it on anyone who didn't truly deserve it. It's incredibly dangerous in the wrong hands, so I try to make sure that my hands are the right ones."

Kali looked like she was in deep thought for more than a moment, before that easy smile reappeared on her face. "Well, I'm glad to hear that. Blake trusts you completely, though she's made mistakes with her trust before. You can understand why I'd like to triple-check who she puts her loyalty in."

It was the words from Kali that made Jaune understand something that he'd sorely misunderstood upon his arrival in Menagerie.

Ghira was not to be feared, but respected. The only person on Menagerie that was truly to be feared was Kali Belladonna, and Jaune knew exactly why. He'd never met someone who could smile so kindly and convey so much threat in the same expression.

Jaune nodded. "Completely. I like to think I'd do the same thing in your stead." He hoped he'd camouflaged his sudden nervousness well enough with the firmness of his voice, but he wasn't completely convinced.

Luckily, Blake arrived to save him from her mother's potential, subtle wrath.

"Morning."

Okay, so Blake's rescue could use a little work.

"Morning, dear. How did you sleep?" Kali asked, turning to face her daughter with a beaming smile.

Jaune sighed in relief.

"It was… nostalgic," she uttered, searching for the right word. "I didn't think I missed it, but I did."

Kali wrapped Blake in a hug, squeezing tight before releasing. "I was just going to wake your father. Stay right here, I'll bring back some tea."

Blake nodded, a misty-eyed smile on her face that she was trying in vain to hide from her leader, and the two of them watched as Kali happily sauntered out of the dining hall, leaving just the two of them to themselves.

Blake, ever the one to recover from emotions quickly, turned to Jaune. "So, what's your plan for today?"

Jaune had to think for a moment, searching for the best way to phrase his ever-growing to-do list. "I think the people from Hallowed Quay are still alive."

That, unexpectedly, was not the way he meant to phrase anything. In fact, it was a completely different topic altogether.

"What? Last night you said-" Blake began, but Jaune cut her off quickly, realising that ending on that wasn't his greatest idea.

"I had a quest to discover what happened to them, right? Well, it hasn't been marked as failed, so I have to assume that they're still alive. At least, there's a chance they might be, and I can't just give up before I find out for sure."

Blake looked a little stunned, but she nodded all the same. "You said you needed supplies, right? We'll go get some, then you can head back to the dungeon."

"That's just it. I had a look at the sixth floor, and the only way down further is locked behind a door that I can't lockpick, the skill isn't high enough level. I'd have to push it up to Level 25 before I can go through."

The both of them descended into thought before Jaune came to an idea that he knew Blake would absolutely hate.

"Blake, you know how to pick difficult locks, right?"

Blake glared at him half-heartedly. "Yes. Infiltration training from my time in the White Fang."

"You're going to hate me, but you might be our only way through to the next floor. How long can you hold your breath?"

Blake stared for a long while, before answering. "If there weren't lives on the line I'd consider ending our friendship."

"Wait, you consider me a friend?"

* * *

Breakfast was a fast affair, and Jaune and Blake managed to quickly and concisely explain what they were going out to do.

Well, Blake explained it quickly and concisely. Jaune stumbled through the first sentence and Blake didn't give him a second chance.

Totally fair, of course, he didn't really want to try again anyway. He needed to conserve his Charisma. Which wasn't a thing, but still.

He needed all the talking capability he could get, for today. His grand shopping trip was going to be taxing, in what he could only imagine was multiple ways.

Like monetarily, but that's something he was prepared for. There wasn't much point in having Lien without anything to spend it on.

Ghira had mentioned something about having spoken to a few shopkeepers and suppliers the previous day. Jaune wasn't exactly expecting a warm welcome, but at the people he'd be talking to would actually talk to him. Adding to that the amount of Lien he actually had, he expected he'd be able to proverbially grease the palms of anybody who was less than enthused with trading with a human.

Once both he and Blake had bid their temporary farewells and ventured out of the house, suffering the onslaught of the beginning of what was going to be another warm day, Jaune found himself with a pressing question.

"Where to first?" He asked, cocking his head to the side just slightly. There was a whole array of places to go, but not only did he not know which one would be their first destination, he also didn't know where any of those said places were actually located.

"That depends on what you want to do first," Blake began, humming in thought. "What did you have in mind?"

A lot of things, too many to keep track of so easily.

First thing on his mental list was leveling his _Crafting_ skill, and whilst he had a lot of methods to do so, he latched onto the one he was most familiar with.

"Is there a place that sells raw materials? I think the best way to get my _Crafting_ up is to forge some ingots."

As it turned out, there was in fact, a decently-sized stonework building with an attached wooden structure, a small staircase leading up to the wooden framework.

The store itself was located within the wooden part, and Jaune could see the smokestack of what was an attached forge area inside the stone brick part, so at least he wasn't going to have to track a different place down to actually get any XP from his purchases.

Of course, that was if he could actually purchase anything here, or even be allowed to use the forge. He'd just have to ask, he supposed, as he followed Blake inside.

They'd hit a little bell at the top of the door, the ringing sounding out throughout the storefront, and a young feline faunus answered the sound, darting out of the rear room and giving Blake a wide smile that froze as she caught sight of Jaune.

She couldn't have been more than fifteen, but the sight of a human was not something she was used to, and Jaune could see the panic in her eyes.

"C-can I help you with something?" She asked, directing the question at Blake, although her eyes never left Jaune.

Blake stalled, unsure of what to do, so Jaune figured he'd put his semi-recently-improved Charisma to the test.

"Hey, is there someone a little older we could talk to? I've got a few… complicated questions I'd like to ask."

He didn't, but the young girl latched onto the excuse like an inflatable ring in a tsunami. "Uh, yeah!"

That was all she said before she darted back into the room she'd originally departed from, and Jaune could hear very faint, muffled conversation.

It wasn't long until an older faunus woman stepped out, obviously the girl's mother, fairly more dignified than her daughter. Well, she didn't freeze up upon sight of Jaune, so that was a good sign.

"Can we help you?"

The question was once again directed at Blake, but this time she simply gestured to Jaune, as he took a half-step forward.

"I was wondering what kind of raw ore you had for sale, if you have any. I'm looking to purchase a decent amount, but I'm not picky about what kinds."

The woman stalled for a moment, gaze flicking between Blake and Jaune, before she sighed. "Let me take a look at our stock. Sophie, get me the books!"

The last part was directed at her daughter, and the girl quickly darted out from the room once more, just as quickly returning to the safety of the rear room.

The woman poured over the books for a few moments, scanning down a well-organized list of stock. "Well, we've got plenty of ore. How much were you looking to spend?"

Jaune replied quickly. "I've got nearly a hundred-thousand lien to work with."

The woman looked back at the books for a single second, before her head snapped up at lightning speed, Blake performing her own double-take that was nearly as fast.

"A hundred thousand?!" The two of them exclaimed in stereo.

Jaune nodded, not at all fazed by the idea of spending that much Lien. "Do you have tin and copper ore, along with iron ore? I'll take five-hundred of tin and copper and three-hundred of iron, if that's alright."

The woman had brought out a notepad, and was doing some of the fastest math Jaune had ever seen.

"Well, that'll rack you up about…" She paused, double-checking her math. She glanced up at him again. "About 175,000 Lien, all up. A little outside what you said you had to spend."

Jaune nodded. "Any chance we could lower that? I'm making a pretty big sale."

The woman shook her head. "Big sale or not, you're pretty much emptying out our stock, and my husband won't have any metal to work. Besides, you're lucky we're even selling to you in the first place."

Jaune sighed. "I guess so. C'mon, Blake, I'm sure we can find somewhere else to get some ore."

Jaune turned, one hand reaching out to grab the door handle, when the woman spoke up once more, giving him reason to both pause and hide his smirk.

"Well, let's not be so hasty. Perhaps if you were willing to do me a little favour I could allow you to haggle?"

It was less of a question and more of an open-ended statement, but Jaune was willing to listen. Just because he could afford nearly two-hundred-thousand Lien didn't mean he wasn't going to try and save his money.

"That depends on the favour, I suppose. What is it?"

"Well, up until a few months ago, we used to get weekly shipments of ore from the mines down south, in the desert. My husband would process it and forge it into various bits and pieces, but the majority of it was forged into ingots and sent around Menagerie, to the other settlements. It was a lucrative business, you see, up until one of the miners cracked through into a large cavern full of Grimm. Most of the miners made it out unscathed, thankfully, but until the mine is cleared of Grimm, we're reliant on whatever we can purchase from passing trade-ships, and with recent Grimm activity getting even worse than usual, that's starting to become few and far between. If you clear the mine, I'll do you a deal on the ore. Sound fair?"

Risk himself in combat in an underground location against a bunch of Grimm, for a reward?

It sounded like what he already did for a living.

"Sure thing. If you let me know where the mine is I'll get started as soon as I pick up the rest of my supplies."

 **[Hunter Bounty Started!]**

 **[Search and Destroy: Dustcairn Mine]**

 **[Clear Dustcairn Mine of Grimm!]**

 **[Reward: Skill Book (The Nature of Nature)]**

So, this was what it was like to be a regular Hunter. Jaune nearly laughed. Taking bounties, clearing locations of Grimm.

Every time Jaune thought his concept of reality had finally settled, it found a way to make him realize once more that his life was quite literally like a video game.

At least Dustcairn Mine didn't seem like it was going to be quite so difficult.

He hoped.

* * *

 **Well, that was definitely a chapter. Things are starting to open up, now that the quote-unquote dungeon tutorial is over, and Jaune's really starting to get into the fetch-quest mindset.**

 **In all seriousness, I'm working on implementing a number of new pieces to the System, including encumbrance, hunter bounties (which you can see just above), and a whole new array of mechanics like the skill that Jaune will get from The Nature of Nature. We've entered 2020, and the System is entering a new era. Feel free to suggest anything you'd like to see!**

 **Now, I'll get straight into reviews!**

 **jhamm: Glad to have you aboard! I do agree with you in that Systema is at its best when it's not just Jaune, but sometimes I do have to step away from a larger cast of characters to let Jaune simply deal with things himself. It's not going to be a regular thing, though. I like to think of this story arc as Jaune learning about how the world at large interacts with the System, and he's going around collecting 'followers' a la Skyrim style. I've been playing a lot of Skyrim recently, it might be obvious.**

 **Fyr RedNight: The Sun is actually just an idea I was tinkering with for a while. Personally, I've always been a fan of sci-fi mechanical prosthetics, probably from many hours of the Deus Ex franchise, but seeing as we've actually seen them in canon, I needed to make it a little more special. In time you'll see the effects it has, but they differ from person to person. Of course, to use it you have to sacrifice an arm, so it's a pretty costly weapon.**

 **razmire: I'm currently in the process of checking out Re:Monster right now, since you mentioned it. On the topic of the arm, I actually don't have a concise picture of it in my head, aside from a more color/decal concept. I toyed with the idea of it being a two-tone black and gold scheme with a golden sun pattern near the shoulder, but I wouldn't say it has any armor-plating. Maybe a future upgrade, though.**

 **drannakka: Thank god the three of you all talked about the arm in a row, makes replying easier, haha. The arm exists to be used by whoever needs it, be that Yang or someone else. I have different plans for Penny as of right now.**

 **Dragon lord Syed 101: It's pure coincidence, I swear. I'm not just writing it the way you say it deliberately.**

 **Magnussen osbourne: It's a problem I've had these past few chapters, because they're pretty much just rocky caverns. As for the Cobalt Key, it's to be used on a Cobalt chest, which, iirc, is still yet to appear.**

 **Steelrain66: Weren't expecting a side-side-quest, were you! I feel like no matter what RPG I'm playing I always get cornered with a side-quest when I try to go shopping. I just wanna sell my loot, Ms Shopkeep, not help track down your missing horse.**

 **DuplicateUserName: I knew at least one person would say it.**

 **IHateGenericCereal: Speaking of the limitations of the loot drops, I've still gotta write a heap of them. Thanks for the reminder. I'm happy to see you and so many other people invested in this story, it's seriously great for motivation, which is a blessing considering I'm usually quite bad at that.**

 **armentho: Once again you make a bunch of great points, but the side-weapon Jaune gets is going to be RNG-dependant. Of course, that might not stay true, I'm reworking some parts of Forging, but we'll have to see. As for Unending Horizon I'm still working on that whenever inspiration hits, but it's slow going sometimes. I keep jumping back and forth from one section to another, and none of them are finished, unfortunately. Gotta take a day or so to hammer out some stuff in regards to that. Also 'angry cute rose noises' is great and I cannot wait until I can reunite the two.**

 **Pharos30003: You're one of the very few people who noticed that. I figured it fit quite well, and the coincidence of the Balayang being in Menagerie was too good to pass up.**

 **dirtrevor: Unfortunately for him he still can't combine elements, but at a later stage, maybe. I still need to work out the details on elements in general, they're a little too close to dead-content for me right now.**

 **Nagisa Tr: Jaune's newest title; Jaune Arc, the Financial Crisis.**

 **Sperance: All of you are mind-readers, I swear to god.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Gods, can you imagine a Port-centric gamer fic. That'd be difficult to write, and even more difficult to read.**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: Fun fact, Sienna is actually in Mistral when she's killed in canon. It might be obvious to quite literally everyone but it took me until a couple months ago to realize that. I'm definitely planning on doing a bit more with her, I just have to figure out what the part she'll play is. I have a couple ideas, though.**

 **jedimasterb10: I feel like no matter how much I write there's always an unintentional Jojo reference.**

 **Kazotskye: I'm in WA, so the fires haven't been anywhere near as bad over here, luckily. I apologize for the chapter length as of late. It fluctuates, but it's usually roughly 4k words.**

 **And that about does it for reviews for this chapter, thank you for stopping by! If you left a review and I didn't get to it, I still read it, I guarantee! Multiple times, probably.**

 **I have a Pa Treon if you want to support me, it gets you access to the spreadsheet and other things. You don't have to, of course.**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	69. Nice

**Hey all, been a little while. Sorry about that, a couple things cropped up in rapid succession that gave me no time or internet connection, so even if I had the time, I'd have still not been able to actually work on anything. Changing internet providers is a painful process sometimes.**

 **Anyway, I won't hold you back from reading the chapter any longer, and to make up for my absence, it's a double-length chapter this week. I hope you enjoy it, these don't come around all too often :P**

 **Thank you to Maxstroid, Alvelvnor, Mark Vibadag, Justas Kondrusevicius and Fittzym for supporting me this month, I really appreciate it!**

* * *

It took a few hours before Jaune was satisfied, but his spending had been well worth it.

Blake had led him around Menagerie's storefronts, herself stocking up on ammunition as Jaune practically invested in his future, purchasing swaths of all kinds of ammunition and other various supplies from the stores that would sell to him. Most of which were only due to Blake applying some significant pressure.

7.62mm ammunition had been far easier to find in stock in the typical surplus store, but it had been Blake taking him to a far more industrial building on the outskirts of Kuo Kuana that Jaune realised why the stores hadn't had all that much variety to begin with.

Menagerie Arms Company, a small but successful Faunus-run weapons company located here in Kuo Kuana, their biggest claim to fame the invention of the .50 GK round.

Which, coincidentally, was the round that Predator, Jaune's sidearm PACK he'd been yet to use, was chambered in.

So, naturally, Jaune bought five-hundred rounds of it, to go with the thousand rounds of 7.62mm he'd already bought.

Unlike the vast majority of the common stores he'd bought from, however, the people at MAC were more than happy to be selling to a human, and Jaune had to imagine that was simply due to them being an international company, even if they weren't the size of many other companies.

Ruby had never mentioned them, or she might have in passing, but it was difficult to drag Ruby away from either Atlas or Vale's main armorers. The SDC-owned Frostbite Arms definitely managed to capture her attention, and Jaune owning Tranquility, one of Frostbite Arms' PACKs, he'd never been surprised her attention had remained fixated on it.

Gods, he missed Ruby. He missed all of his friends, to be fair, but he missed Ruby most of all. Being in a place like this, without her around, it felt… unnatural.

"C'mon, Blake. Let's get out of here."

Blake took one glance at her leader and decided not to press, instead calmly nodding and stepping out of the building once Jaune had finished with his transaction, inventory laden with his recently-acquired ammunition and unladen with the Lien it had cost.

In total, he'd spent 40,500 Lien on ammunition. It was a lot, definitely an investment, but his two longer-range firearms used higher calibers of ammunition, so he was expecting it. Shotgun shells were always cheaper, and he definitely didn't think he'd be spraying a hundred shells at a target.

With Sandstorm, the Light Machine Gun, he was definitely expecting it. Overwhelm the opponent with a swath of fire until they died seemed to be a good tactic, one he'd tried to use before with some of his spells.

Nothing quite had the same DPS as a LMG with a trigger-happy wielder, though.

That wasn't even mentioning Predator, which, ammunition-wise, fell more into the boat of Tranquility. If he was firing more than a single magazine at a target he was in trouble, or just had plenty of better options, or both.

It would serve as an excellent back-up weapon, however, especially for tight, close-quarters situations. Plus, it was a weapon someone else could use in a troublesome situation, even if it was bulky and unwieldy enough that it might prove difficult for anyone to wield, Aura or not.

But, even with all of that, he still kept Crocea Mors on his hip. It just didn't feel right to stop using the sword and shield. It was his heritage, his ancestry. He almost felt like it would have been an insult to do anything else.

Plus there was that mystery quest about discovering more about Crocea Mors, and that meant that he'd have to keep it equipped, just in case. He definitely didn't want to miss out on anything to do with that because he'd kept the weapon in his inventory.

The two of them were on the move, checking their weapons as they moved. They meant business, that seemed to be clear to any onlooker, as neither Blake nor Jaune were interrupted as they moved through the streets.

They'd been given the location of Dustcairn Mine, with all the directions associated. According to the surviving miners that Blake had asked - they hadn't wanted to speak to Jaune - the mine was built into the side of a large sandstone outcropping roughly half-an-hour from the edge of Kuo Kuana, which was a lucky break for all involved.

Moving tonnes of ore through hours and hours of dangerous desert day after day wasn't something Jaune would wish on anyone. Well, anyone aside from a scant few.

The sooner they managed to clear the mine, the sooner they would be able to rescue the inhabitants of Hallowed Quay.

He and Blake were of the same mind when it came to the concept that speed would be preferable in this situation.

They were close to the edge of the desert, now, far enough away from any prying eyes that may have previously been watching him. Far enough away that Jaune could bring out a summon or two, though more than that wasn't only unnecessary, but also a form of punishment. He knew that Cadejo wouldn't exactly enjoy the feeling of hot sand on his paws, summon or not.

Instead, Jaune brought forth Ishara, the dog-sized scorpion chittering quietly to herself as she twisted, checking her surroundings.

"Ishara, scout ahead, let us know if there's anything we need to deal with. Blake and I will follow along in the sky, on Shirdal."

Shirdal appeared behind the two of them as Ishara skittered off, black chitin glistening in the desert sun, and Jaune quickly clambered into the saddle, giving Blake a helping hand into sitting behind him as he ran his other hand soothingly down Shirdal's neck-feathers.

The griffon took off the moment they were ready, powerful wings pumping as they took to the skies, the desert sands beneath them becoming more and more distant, and at the same time, more and more endless. Jaune could see the dusty terrain reaching far, possibly beyond the horizon. Menagerie wasn't immense, especially not in comparison to Sanus or Solitas, but it wasn't small by any means.

"There's the mine, near that ridge!" Blake shouted out over the air that rushed past them, her finger stretching out to point at said ridge, over Jaune's shoulder, and he directed Shirdal towards it.

Beneath them, if one were to look closely, they could see the dust cloud kicked up by the skittering Ishara in her natural habitat, six locomotive legs powering along as she kept up, occasionally simply just dealing with any straggling Grimm rather than warning Jaune.

He was fine with that, she seemed to be enjoying getting to use her stinger in combat, the occasional lance of the pointed barb puncturing sand-coated chitin and straight through to the other side, and if it didn't do that, it was still injecting a rather deadly neurotoxin into the Grimm that she didn't kill on the first strike. They weren't long for the world after that.

He was getting only a small amount of XP from them, but that was about it. A quirk of the System, or some kind of deliberate limitation he didn't know, but he wasn't concerned. It made sense that his summons' kills weren't going to give him much experience, if he considered how experience worked on a more lore-oriented basis.

Shirdal was headed downwards now, swooping towards the mine, and already details were becoming clearer, the heat-haze that permeated the air not necessarily clearing up, but at least becoming less defined with the distance between the objects and his own eyes.

Objects such as the overturned, half-destroyed open-topped truck that still had liquid Dust-fuel in a pool around the fuel tank. Not something he'd want to mess with even on a good day. That was a bomb waiting to go off if he wasn't careful with his shots, but more importantly, it was a symbol.

A symbol that things inside were not going to be any better inside than outside. In fact, they were most likely going to be worse. To be fair, it wasn't exactly surprising, that fact, but having a blatant confirmation was still a bit of a shock.

Jaune still wasn't used to the world. His family had kept him sheltered almost his entire life, and that sheltering had made him long to escape it, to experience the world, to be a hero like the ones he'd heard so many stories about.

Now, having spent so long out there, out in the world… he realised the truth.

Life out here, Menagerie especially, was cruel. It was a harsh, cruel mistress that beat those that rose too high back down to the ground.

Jaune slid from the saddle as they neared the ground, boots pounding against compacted sand, finding what had once been a concrete platform underneath, now windswept and sand-covered from the most recent sandstorm. The security building had a layer of dust and sand built up inside, the door half-open, and a large dune had formed against the side of it, covering one of the windows.

Blake hopped off Shirdal as the griffon unsummoned himself, no longer needed at that moment, and quickly moved off to the side, inspecting the cabin of the overturned truck. "No-one in here, dead or alive. Either it was empty during the attack, or the driver bailed when it tipped."

"Probably empty, if I had to guess," Jaune remarked. "Can't imagine you'd give away an off-road truck to try and escape on foot. Besides, the keys are in the security checkpoint, I can see them from here."

Blake hummed noncommittally, attention already elsewhere. "No footprints, must've been blown away. Annoying, but expected."

Jaune was already moving towards the opening of the mine. "Doesn't matter, I guess. We're here to clear the place out, not reverse-engineer what happened. Ishara's already inside."

Blake nodded and gestured to Jaune. "Lead the way."

He did so, taking a step onto firm, well-worn wooden planks and taking the steps two at a time, Tranquility raised and shouldered, just in case Ishara had missed something.

Ishara had missed something, though what she'd missed was neither Grimm, nor her fault.

 **[Dungeon Discovered!]**

 **[Raid: Dustcairn Mine!]**

 **[0/5 Floors Cleared!]**

Well, at least there weren't as many floors as the Hallowed Bay. He wasn't sure if that was a good sign or not.

Knowing him, though? Probably not.

* * *

Speed, as he'd previously stated, was of the essence. The two of them moved with trained efficiency, clearing branching tunnels and expansive corridors of sandy stone, Blake's enhanced senses and Jaune's own brand of _Sixth Sense_ allowing them to effectively sweep through the first floor without too much hassle, the only threat being a cluster of Arachnae, five of them, that had descended from the ceiling of one of the tunnels.

They found them last, and Jaune decided, from prior experience, he wasn't going to wait and see how they'd attack.

He discovered very quickly that no matter the level, in this case 60, Tranquility packed one hell of a punch when he pulled the trigger with the barrel practically level with the target.

One pull of the trigger turned one Arachnae into a black mess against the wall, and Gambol Shroud's sheath quickly carved another into two rapidly dissolving pieces.

Of course, there were still three more, thankfully Jaune hadn't lost his ability to count, and the closest leapt towards him, an attempted bite failing as it instead latched onto Tranquility's suppressor as Jaune finished racking the slide.

It was safe to say the third didn't last much longer as it ate an entire shell's worth of buckshot.

The fourth lost a leg to a shot from Blake, but its survival lasted all of about half-a-second as Jaune quickly stepped forward, slamming his boot down on it as he dispensed one final shell into the fifth, leaving yet another black stain on the wall. He definitely didn't envy the small, weaker Arachnae, and had to be thankful it wasn't the much bigger Alpha variants, or worse.

They were still worth a half-decent amount of XP, possibly due to the ambush-predator nature of them. That venom was dangerous, no matter their size, he supposed, so that would make sense.

 **[Dustcairn Mine: Floor 1 Cleared!]**

 **[A reward has appeared at the entrance!]**

 **[You've gained 1,260,000 XP and 9,900 Lien! You've acquired 6 Inert Dust, 1 Arachnae Gland and 3 Arachnae Skulls!]**

He absorbed the information from the notifications quickly, not pausing to really delve into them in any depth, not that he necessarily had to, and kept moving, slinging Tranquility over his shoulder for a moment as he quickly used the makeshift wooden ladder to lower himself further down into the carved sandstone mine, dropping the last few feet and landing with a firm thud, Blake not only right on his heels, but also landing far softer. He had a couple clever comments he could make, but he kept them to himself, instead deciding to marvel at the large excavation site in front of him. It was, as the rest of the mine had been so far, mostly sandstone, with wooden platforms constructed to give the place a makeshift look, certain spots looking darker than the rest of the stone, flecked with a variety of colors.

"I guess that's all the ore," Jaune mentioned, loading a couple new shells into Tranquility as he did so, keeping one eye on his surroundings.

Blake didn't seem to care about the unrefined metal ore in the walls, her attention already focused on a darker section on the far side. "Grimm. A group of Creep. It's like they're… feeding."

Well, that captured Jaune's attention. He'd never heard of Grimm feeding on anything aside from the odd body for the fun of it. He figured he should clarify. "What are they feeding on?"

Blake took a step closer, a confused-yet-concerned expression gracing her face. "It… it looks like they're feeding on the stone?"

She said it like she wasn't quite sure of that fact, despite seeing it with her own eyes, and Jaune shrugged. It didn't matter too much in the grand scheme of things, and he had enough mysteries on his plate already.

He quickly folded Tranquility up, affixing it to the mag-plate that was sewn into the shoulder of his coat, freeing up his hands for a more magical approach.

The Creep cluster were still yet to notice either of them, and Jaune wanted to take advantage of that fact, edging closer and closer to where they were feasting, one arm outstretched, hand splayed, waiting for the moment they noticed him.

He was almost surprised when they didn't notice his approach, but he was soon to change that fact, aiming carefully at the largest of the Creep, one of the Alpha, he presumed.

He pulled the metaphorical, mental trigger, and a _Mana Bullet_ departed from his fingertips, streaking through the somewhat-dusty air and smacking against the largest form of the Alpha Creep, the one at the far end of the ore chunk that they were feasting upon.

It had all of a single moment to consider its options before Jaune left it with a smoking hole in its head, the Grimm keeling over with a rapidly-halted roar that cut off as quickly as it started, almost like a rage-filled exclamation of surprise.

It was accompanied by a slight ding that only Jaune could hear, indicating he'd landed a devastatingly useful critical hit on the enemy. That only left, by his quick count, 10 of the smaller Creep, and the 1 remaining Alpha Creep.

Nothing he and Blake couldn't handle, or so he hoped. If one of them decided to actually be some kind of Grimm god masquerading as a lowly Creep in some half-baked dungeon in the middle of the Menagerie Desert he was going to be a little mad.

The other Creep performed a joint performance of the previously-interrupted roar, stubby legs propelling them towards Jaune and, subsequently, Blake, gaping maws revealing blackness with bright red tongues, and Jaune quickly took a step back, just out of reach of the first bite-leap combo, Crocea Mors flickering up to deliver a painful retort, more out of habit than any actual choice. It just felt right in his hands, what could he say?

In the midst of the beginning of combat, there wasn't really anything he would have had the time to say, even if he'd prepared to say it or not. Creep may not have been intimidating on their own, but a whole group of them, incensed by the death of one of their own, that was a different story. Ten jaws, or rather nine jaws and one larger jaw, snapped at his heels, his ankles, his knees, his arms; him, in summary.

Jaune wasn't having any of it.

He swung with only the kind of vicious intensity and strength that a Hunter under attack from Grimm ever could, Aura flowing like blood through his muscles as he strained, watching in satisfaction as the first of the remaining Creep fell, Crocea Mors biting through the exposed inner workings of the closest of the cluster, his fist reaching out in a surprising follow-up to the blade, delivering a _Mana Blast_ that blew the remaining nine back, most of them dazed.

The only one that hadn't been nearly killed by the _Mana Blast_ was the second and final Alpha, which had recovered spectacularly well, already lunging for his exposed neck.

Well, more exposed. Jaune wasn't exactly ever defenseless, outside of a few extraneous circumstances, but he didn't retaliate, already aware of the swift end the Alpha was about to experience as it bled out on the end of Gambol Shroud's blade, moments away from kicking the ever-proverbial bucket.

Jaune delivered a swift finisher to the still-grouped remaining Creep, a half-hearted toss of a _Mana Grenade_ proving to be as effective as the spell's real-world counterpart, a blast of arcane energy leaving chunks of stubby Grimm over the nearby rock, splattering even more black blood over the wooden structures.

 **[Dustcairn Mine: Floor 2 Cleared!]**

 **[A reward has appeared at the entrance!]**

 **[You've gained 352,814 XP and 9,240 Lien! You've acquired 10 Inert Dust, 3 Creep Hides, 1 Alpha Creep Hide, 5 Creep Bones, 1 Alpha Creep Bone, 2 Creep Skulls, 2 Crimson Keys, 1 Citrine Key and 1 Cobalt Key!]**

Another reward at the surface, huh? Jaune had a couple reasons in mind as to why that would be, but he stowed those thoughts away, deciding instead to focus on the task at hand.

Which, at the present moment, was descending further into the mine, into the hastily-hewn tunnel that lay directly in front of the two Hunters, the rickety wooden supports doing nothing for Jaune's rapidly waning courage.

Sure, he could carve stone with his bare hands, but that didn't mean he wanted to do it at threat of death. He didn't think he could survive a cave-in, even with the arsenal at his disposal.

Combining that with the scaling threats, however small in comparison to the only previous dungeon he'd been in, he knew it was only going to get harder from here.

"Ladies first?" Jaune ventured.

Blake just stared.

* * *

"Up ahead, past the excavator wreck."

Blake's voice snapped his attention away from loose thoughts, and Jaune quickly withdrew an arrow from his quiver, hooking it into the bowstring, holding Telum at the ready.

"Grimm?" He whispered the question as quietly as he could manage, trusting Blake's physical proof of her heritage to pick up his words.

She did, a shake of her head indicating a negative. "Not that I can make out. A person, though I think they're dead."

Jaune accepted the grim fact with a small sigh. He wasn't a fan of loss of life, that was for sure, but there was nothing he could do now. "Any idea what kind of Grimm killed them?"

Blake shook her head once more. "Not from this distance, but I can get closer. We're going to have to get closer, actually, it's the only way forward."

Jaune nodded, following close behind as the two advanced, step by step, taking it slow. If there were Grimm hiding nearby, Jaune didn't really want to blunder into them without any preparation. He'd learned his lesson, after it had been drilled into his head a thousand times. From the Emerald Forest to Mountain Glenn to deep within the Hallowed Bay, Jaune had experienced that particular blunder so many times. Too many times, if he was being honest.

He kept his head on a swivel, as his father used to say, whilst Blake investigated the body. "Puncture wounds, but not bites, and discoloration under the skin. From what I remember from Port's lectures, we're dealing with something with a stinger. Definitely venomous."

Jaune couldn't help the sigh that escaped him. "Great. I love the venomous ones. Deathstalker?"

"If it is, it isn't too big. Definitely not as big as the one from our Initiation." Blake stood back up, checking the chamber on Gambol Shroud. "All we have to do now is find it."

"Shouldn't be too hard," Jaune remarked, before immediately regretting his statement. Why did he constantly feel the need to test his luck?

"You know you're inviting remarkably painful irony, right?" Blake asked him, quirking one eyebrow.

Another sigh. "Yeah, I know. The universe just does it to spite me, I think."

"To be fair, I'm pretty sure your semblance is directly spiting the universe on any given day."

"True," Jaune replied. His next witty comment died on his lips as Blake held up a hand to silence him, and he crouched lower, sighting down Telum in the direction his teammate was pointing.

He couldn't see anything, as dark as the corner was, devoid of any of the still-active lamps that haphazardly littered the tunnel, so he quickly channelled Mana into his eyes, activating _Mana Sight_.

It didn't make him see in the dark, unfortunately, but it did at the very least help him when whatever was there did come into view, a yellow-highlighted leg passing within his vision, and quickly the yellow spread, coating the shape of a dog-sized Deathstalker, nearly the same size as Ishara.

He could see it now, tagged as it was by _Mana Sight_ , but he had to guess there was more than one, from the way it moved.

He had a bright idea, slowly letting the bowstring return to its default position, placing the arrow back in his quiver silently.

"I'm going to toss a _Mana Flash_ ," Jaune whispered to Blake, warning her of the impending lightshow. "Once it goes off, we need to attack quickly, take advantage of the guaranteed critical hits."

Guaranteed critical hits that he hoped would come into play by delaying the stealth attack with a _Mana Flash_. He had no actual evidence that it would work how he was saying it would, but it made a certain amount of sense in his head. He was still in stealth as long as he wasn't spotted, right?

Jaune waited a beat as Blake quickly placed her arms over her human ears, cat ears tucked tightly down on her head, eyes shut tight, and then he threw, the _Mana Flash_ arcing over until it thwacked against the wall behind the two Deathstalkers that he could now see, and he shut his eyes.

The _Mana Flash_ went off in a blast of concussive sound and luminescent light, and the ungodly screeches and chitters of two blinded, deafened Deathstalkers filled the tunnel.

Blake and Jaune moved like how they were trained to, Gambol Shroud and Telum pointed towards the targets that Jaune could now see in a very clear red outline, names and HP bars projected above their heads as _Mana Sight_ worked alongside _Observe_.

His arrow shot forth from Telum, the bow adding an incredible amount of power to the projectile, and Jaune watched in no slight amount of awe as it went straight through the front of the nearest Alpha Deathstalker, the ding of a critical hit sounding out to only Jaune's ears as he watched the health-bar drop down significantly quickly, going from 27,450 HP to 0 HP in a matter of moments.

His eyes strayed to Blake's attack, where the blade of Gambol Shroud punctured the chitin, causing the other Alpha Deathstalker to screech in pain, thrashing about as Jaune's second arrow hit it under the plating on the left pincer's joint.

It died not nearly as quickly as the first, stealth having been dropped for Jaune after his first shot, and Blake's attack having not done quite enough damage to kill it instantly, but as it writhed and twitched, Blake withdrew her blade, flicking it free of black blood. "Good shot."

Jaune gave his teammate a quick smile, before he found his attention distracted by the sudden notification.

 **[Dustcairn Mine: Floor 3 Cleared!]**

 **[A reward has appeared at the entrance!]**

 **[You've gained 2,083,858 XP and 10,736 Lien! You've acquired 17 Inert Dust, 5 Alpha Deathstalker Eyes and 1 Grade III Water Dust Crystal!]**

 **[You have leveled up to Level 63 and gained +5 Stat Points!]**

"Hey, Blake, I got a Dust Crystal!" Jaune announced. With this he could get a new elemental. At least, if he had the required Soul Orbs, which he had to imagine he could at least create.

Blake gave a non-committal 'mmhmm', turning to look at her disintegrating handiwork, face rapidly blanching. "Jaune… these are all bodies."

Jaune joined Blake in paling rapidly taking a step around to peer into the gap where the Alpha Deathstalkers had come from.

It was less of a gap and more of a breach in the sandstone, cracked and scorched from what looked like mining explosives, dark up until a certain point, where light seemed to shine in from the other end of the short passage.

However, that wasn't what captured either Hunters' attentions. The numerous bodies of miners did. One fox faunus was disemboweled on the left wall, another bear faunus, or what was left of a bear faunus, shredded on the right. A lizard faunus of some kind was missing their lower legs, and Jaune could make out their tail on the opposite side to where they lay.

"Shit," Jaune muttered, Blake already turning away, fighting the urge to throw up. _System Mind_ had triggered the moment he'd looked, but Blake didn't have that advantage, and he placed one reassuring hand on her back, making small circles as she evacuated her stomach's contents onto the stone.

Once Blake had recovered enough to speak, she did so, still avoiding turning back to facing the tunnel. "We need to give them a burial, or something. We can't just let these bodies sit here."

Jaune couldn't agree more. "I'll do what I can. It won't be much, but it's better than letting anyone else see this."

He stepped over to the passage. "Is there something I should say?"

Blake shook her head. "Words would never be enough."

All the same, Jaune wasn't going to let them go without at least something. "I'm sorry."

 _Terrakinesis_ took ahold of the sandstone, and with some effort Jaune moved it, twisting it into place, encasing the corpses, leaving the passage itself without much reminder of what had happened.

He repeated his apology and his earth-shaping with the lone body from before, dusting his hands off, sand dropping from his palms. "We need to keep moving."

Blake nodded. "I'm okay, now. I just…" Never one for words, she stopped herself. "I'm ready."

The two of them moved deeper still, stepping into the now empty passage.

* * *

Despite the despair that lingered in his mind, Jaune couldn't help but be both startled and amazed as to what was on the other side of the small passage.

The light had been a little confusing, but originally Jaune had assumed it simply came from one of the Dust lanterns that populated the mine. Stepping through, however, proved that to be not only wrong, but so far off from the truth that it was almost unbelievable.

"How is this even possible?" Blake asked, one arm stretched up to cover her face from the bright light.

It was a gigantic cavern, entirely encased in sandstone, as the rest of Dustcairn Mine had been, but that was where the similarities ended. Instead of sand on the ground, there was thick, lush grass, large green trees jutting out from multiple places, creating what was effectively an underground forest. The light was the second-most interesting part of the cavern, just in front of the greenery.

It was a gigantic Dust crystal in the ceiling, glowing furiously, illuminating the cavern and casting incredibly detailed shadows onto the ground.

The most interesting part of this large cavern was the gigantic tree trunk at the far end that seemed to stretch into the roof, ancient wood nearly petrified from age. It was distant, surprisingly so, and Jaune knew it would take at least a few minutes to reach if there weren't any obstacles in their path. With the thicket of trees on all sides, however, that wasn't going to happen.

"This place is incredible," Jaune uttered, eyes wide with disbelief. How a place like this could even exist was beyond him.

He soon caught sight of the walls of the cavern, noticing something. "Blake, those pillars of sandstone are carved. Either the miners decided to become stonemasons, or…"

"Or someone created this place. Incredible," She finished his thought, looking at one of the closer pillars. "Who could've made a place such as this, though?"

Jaune didn't have an answer. "Maybe Doctor Oobleck would have an explanation. Or an aneurysm," He added, a rueful smile crossing his face. "I'm not sure we could keep up with him to find out, though."

"Any bet on our destination being that tree trunk?"

Jaune let out a small laugh. "No bet. It's practically given us an invite." His gaze lowered somewhat as the reality of the situation reaffirmed itself in his mind. "Keep your eyes open. Whatever killed those miners is still here, somewhere. There was no way a couple Deathstalkers could do that much damage."

Almost by habit, Blake checked the chamber of Gambol Shroud, nodding to herself, content that a round was in fact loaded. "You should send out a summon, get us a bird's eye view."

Jaune nodded. "Good call. Apollo, you heard Blake."

Apollo appeared in a singular moment, taking flight with ease, powerful wings beating as he took to the sky, his form casting a shadow across the landscape.

Jaune closed his eyes for a moment, allowing his _Bound Senses_ and _Soul Scout_ to activate as usual. Apollo would let him know if he saw anything, and he had complete faith in the Nevermore-soul's ability to do so.

Of course, Apollo couldn't see through trees, so he needed a more land-based scout. "Cadejo, wanna help out?"

The wolf formed quickly, Jaune reaching out to run his fingers through Cadejo's fur, almost out of habit. Not that the wolf minded. "Keep an eye out for anything interesting, or hostile. Blake and I need to clear this place out. Bark if you find something."

Cadejo gave a quiet half-'woof', turning and bounding into the undergrowth, padded paws and remarkable mobility making short work of the terrain.

Blake was patiently waiting, and he turned to her, gesturing his head. "C'mon, let's get moving. As amazing as this place is, I want to get out of here as soon as possible."

"Finally, something we agree on."

Jaune rolled his eyes as he reached into his inventory, withdrawing Predator, placing it on the mag-plate on his hip, returning Telum and its quiver back into his inventory. Sue him, he wanted to experiment.

He kept his hand on the large sidearm, his other hand free to cast spells if necessary, and began walking, ducking under the lower branches, Blake close behind.

It wasn't hard going, by any stretch, but their pace was still significantly hampered. They could move, but not freely, restricted by both the undergrowth and the branches above it. Pushing through took effort and slowed them down, but even still, they were making progress.

Strangely, neither Apollo nor Cadejo had spotted anything hostile, and Jaune was worried. Blake hadn't mentioned hearing anything, and his _Sixth Sense_ hadn't triggered at any point, but there had to be something out here. He hadn't seen any quote-unquote skill checks, as he'd tentatively named them, such as the locked door in the Hallowed Bay, but he wasn't entirely sure.

His nerves were starting to get to him. Shadows in the bushes that didn't exist flickered by his eyes. A sound to his left had him reaching for Predator, but there was nothing there, and Blake hadn't heard a thing.

There was something… wrong, with this place. Down here, something felt almost unnatural. Like it wasn't supposed to exist. The feeling was pervasive, he could feel it down in his very bones, and yet Blake seemed unfazed by it.

There was something following them. Jaune sensed it before anything else, the unnatural feeling ramping up to a level that was making him physically sweat. He could feel his perspiring brow against the back of his hand as he wiped his face clear, eyes going wide the moment he moved his arm.

He moved as fast as he physically could, a _Flash Step_ taking him just far enough out of the way that the Grimm missed, but only just by a fraction. If he hadn't felt it, sensed it, he'd have taken those razor sharp claws directly to the face.

Blake snapped her aim up, squeezing the trigger, but the Grimm was already gone. Jaune had barely had a moment to _Observe_ it before it disappeared back into the undergrowth.

 **[Elder Bashenga]**

 **[Grimm, Rare, Level 61]**

 **[HP: 36,600/36,600]**

Jaune didn't know what a Bashenga was until today. It honestly resembled some kind of Grimm panther, with sparse Grimmbone plating on it. It was also, without a doubt, one of the more terrifying Grimm Jaune had ever gone up against.

Not because it looked intimidating, it looked like any other Grimm, really, but the fact that not only could he not hear it, see it or do anything but sense the latent negativity it was exuding, but Blake couldn't pick it up at all, even with her incredible senses.

Even his own _Sixth Sense_ hadn't picked it up, and it was really only thanks to dumb luck and his improved reaction speed that he'd managed to get out of the way.

It was stalking them, waiting for the right moment to strike, the right angle to catch them in surprise.

And he had no idea where it was.

His finger rested against the trigger guard of Predator, his stance lowered, other hand ready. Blake did much the same, keeping her center of mass lower towards the ground, the sheath of Gambol Shroud in one hand and the rest of the weapon in the other.

They waited a moment, eyes tracking across the plant life in a vain hope that they would catch sight of the predator that stalked them, to no avail.

It was effectively invisible. Or it had departed. Jaune wasn't sure which, but erring on the side of caution seemed like the smarter play.

"Stay close," Jaune whispered as he began to move, pushing through the thicket carefully. "If that thing comes at us again and we don't see it…"

Blake didn't need any explanation as to what might happen. She'd seen plenty of evidence prior. "I'm right behind you."

A bark sounded through the underground forest, cutting off halfway as the noise was snuffed out. Jaune felt a sharp pain in his forehead, feeling Cadejo unwillingly return to him. Jaune nearly retched, the feeling of pain lancing through his body without doing any actual, physical damage.

Blake paled. "Is Cadejo-"

Jaune shook his head. "He's okay, thank the gods. He was sent away, not killed. Hurts like hell, though. We need to kill this bastard." He voiced the final part with a harsh growl to his voice, frustration and anger leaching into it.

Blake understood that feeling all too well, giving her leader a sharp nod. She was so used to being the predator that she'd honestly forgotten what it felt like to be stalked like this. It was aggravating, knowing it was out there somewhere, and being unable to do anything about it.

"It's coming closer," Jaune muttered, feeling the cold sweat break out once more. "Fast."

Blake didn't know how Jaune could tell. There was no sound, no visual cue that might lead him to think that, but he had quite a bit more going on under the surface, so she imagined it was some kind of skill.

Jaune knew better, of course. This was just his _Sixth Sense_ picking up on latent hatred rather than any actual sensation.

The Bashenga burst from the trees above them, catching the two off-guard, even if they had been expecting an attack. Verticality hadn't been in the cards until the Bashenga pulled it off, and Jaune quickly enacted his hastily-thought-out plan.

His _Mana Field_ wasn't going to be enough to completely halt the Elder Bashenga's attack, but it would be enough to at the very least block the vast majority of the damage, and possibly disorient the beast, because Jaune wasn't just creating a regular old _Mana Field_.

He didn't remember ever trying this before, and he had to wonder why, as his _Lightning Infused Mana Field_ crackled into reality, sparks of arcane lightning lancing off and leaving scorch marks on the ground.

The Elder Bashenga, mid-air as it was, could do nothing to dodge, and committed to the strike, shattering the magical dome beneath its claws, the discharge of electricity jolting it's foreleg.

It hit the ground hard on three legs, making to leap away once more, but a round from Predator caught it in the left hind leg, the same side as the foreleg that was limp from the _Lightning Infused Mana Field_ , preventing it from making the leap as it fell on one side, knocked off balance from the high-caliber round as it ripped through the flesh.

The Elder Bashenga rolled with it, though, attempting its best to get clear, but Blake quickly pounced, a devastating blow from her cleaver-sheath cutting straight through the already weakened rear limb, severing it with a spray of black arterial blood.

Jaune ignored the spray even as it hit him in the face, stepping close and unloading three shots into the Grimm's head, watching in grim satisfaction as each round hammered home, leaving the creature's head a mess, the final shot ringing out through the forest, accompanied by a quiet ding, the critical hit indicator.

Both of them slumped backwards, adrenaline still pumping through their veins.

If Jaune had been a split-second too late, it would have been bad. Very, very bad. Possibly lethal, though Blake was in far more danger that Jaune was of being one-shot. He knew his Aura was significantly more than Blake's, simply just from the array of perks he had at his disposal. He'd have to see about fixing that, or at least doing something to help out. Another thing to add to his to-do list.

 **[Dustcairn Mine: Floor 4 Cleared!]**

 **[A reward has appeared at the entrance!]**

 **[You've gained 2,083,900 XP and 6,710 Lien! You've acquired 17 Inert Dust, 1 Elder Bashenga Claw, 1 Elder Bashenga Pelt and 1 Crimson Key!]**

 **[You have leveled up to Level 64 and gained +5 Stat Points!]**

More notifications, more items, more levels. All in a day's work, he guessed. Not an easy day, by any stretch, and not a day that was done. There was more to investigate, and that gigantic, near-petrified tree trunk was calling him. There was something in there, there had to be.

First, though…

"Let's… let's take a break."

Never had Blake agreed with Jaune faster.

* * *

It was a makeshift camp, no doubt about that, but Jaune was proud of it all the same. _Terrakinesis_ continued to prove its use as a utility skill, flattening the ground out, pushing much of the thicket back to give them some space, and leaving only soft grass atop, a raised stone dais serving as a table, two empty ration packs sitting on it.

It wasn't the most delicious of lunches, but what it lacked in taste it made up for in sustenance.

Considering one of them was chicken and the other had been tuna until Blake had gotten a hold of it, Jaune could say it was at least satisfying, but that was more from the exertion and less from the food itself.

The other side of the table was occupied by Blake, who was doing field maintenance on Gambol Shroud, the slide of the firearm detached from the rest of the weapon, amber eyes inspecting it for damage.

Jaune ran another hand through Cadejo's fur, the wolf having been resummoned just to relax. He owed him some rest, at the very least, and definitely some pampering.

Which, for Cadejo, was just giving him attention in the form of pats, rubs and scratches. Occasionally a belly rub, if Cadejo was feeling like it.

Blake replaced the slide onto Gambol Shroud. "I'm done. We can keep going now."

Jaune yawned as he stretched, causing Blake to do the same. "The sooner we're done, the better. This place is making me tired," He said, dismissing Cadejo and quickly checking he had everything he wanted equipped on his available mag-plates.

Predator on his right hip, Crocea Mors, in sheath, on his left hip. He was still undecided on his shoulder mag-plates, though. "Blake, should I take Telum, or should I try out Sandstorm?"

Blake shrugged. "Might as well, I guess. You can always switch back if you need to."

Blake, as usual, made an excellent point, and Jaune quickly equipped Sandstorm on his left shoulder, wincing slightly as the weight hit him. He was more than strong enough to carry it, of course, but that didn't mean it wasn't a pain in the ass.

He finished off by equipping Tranquility on his right shoulder, just to see if balancing the weight would make it feel any better. It didn't, but it was the thought that counted.

He did like the idea of being fully equipped, though, or as equipped as he could be at the moment. He still had room to get mag-plates put on his clothing, if he wanted. Now wasn't the time to be considering those ideas, though. Now was, instead, time to be restarting their trek through bushes, trees and other plant-life towards a giant semi-petrified tree trunk to find whatever it was that was near/at-the-top/inside it.

Man his life was strange without context.

Apollo was still in the air, maintaining his orbit, and Jaune used the link he shared with his summons to orient himself, once again beginning his pathfinding, one foot in front of the other as he pushed his way through the nearest branches, Blake close behind.

They weren't too far, thankfully, and less than five minutes passed before they reached their destination, the tree stretching out far above them. Without forest-cover, Jaune could actually see it clearly, and most prominent was the distinctive door-shaped door nearly half-way up the trunk.

"I think we've gotta go up there."

Blake glanced up, the glare of the giant glowing Dust crystal making her squint. "Looks like it. Are we climbing?"

"I mean, you can, if you want. I've got a couple ideas, if you'd be willing to stick around."

"If your idea doesn't involve having Apollo fly us up to the top I'm not staying."

Jaune slumped. "Aw. I had so many plans."

"Weiss is right, you are like a child. Fine, let me hear one."

Jaune pondered for a moment, looking up. "Well, if I use _Surface Walk_ and carry you-"

"Not happening."

Jaune filed that idea under 'maybe', and continued to think. "What if I launch us into the air with _Terrakinesis_?"

"Wouldn't it just be easier to make an elevator out of the ground rather than a launchpad?"

"Huh. Amendment; I use _Terrakinesis_ to lift us to the doorway. Sound good?"

Blake let out a slight chuckle, before her eyes wandered to the base of the trunk. "Jaune, if this tree is petrified, wouldn't you be able to shape it? Why not just make some stairs?"

It was a question that hadn't occurred to him, so he took a step closer, resting one palm against it, willing _Terrakinesis_ to begin controlling the petrified wood, just so he could get a grasp of the situation. "It's not all petrified, only the top-most layer. I could probably make some stairs, but it'll take a bit of time."

He willed _Terrakinesis_ to begin doing just that, stone panels extruding from the surface, creating a 'floating' staircase that would make interior designers salivate.

Blake tested her weight, finding them more than sturdy enough to take two of her, and began climbing, Jaune trailing right behind, one hand maintaining contact with the petrified wood as they began scaling the side.

It wasn't too far up to actually travel, and they arrived in a short time, not even having to double-back on themselves with the stairs. For a moment he'd been worried about that, but it seemed to work out conveniently for the two of them.

Blake stepped up onto the ledge first, and Jaune clambered up after her, taking a look at the doorway.

"I can honestly say that I wasn't expecting this," Blake remarked, and Jaune couldn't help but agree. After all that effort, all the pain, suffering, all the trials and tribulations of getting this far, to be faced with this was almost a slap in the face.

"It's just a big wooden room with a chest in it," Jaune stated, as if saying it would change it. "An Opal Chest, looks like."

He took a tentative step inside, as if worried that it might explode, but there was nothing. "I don't even see somewhere for something to hide, unless it's small enough to hide behind the chest. Are you seeing anything, Blake?"

Blake shook her head. "Seems a bit anticlimactic, in my opinion. Not that I'm complaining."

Jaune shrugged. "Well, the chest doesn't have a lock on it, at least. That's something. I'm going to see what's inside."

Blake stepped inside behind him, one hand still on her weapon. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

Jaune shrugged. "Can't see why it would be a bad one. If anything, opening it is probably the trigger for a Grimm to appear from somewhere."

He stepped close, kneeling down and flipping the lid on the chest, reaching into the shadowy depths like usual.

Jaune's hand touched the bottom.

"Wha-"

The sharpened edges of the lid shut on his arm in an instant, and Jaune screamed.

* * *

 **Ouch. That's gotta hurt. There's something to be said for RWBY characters and losing limbs, especially in my stuff. What can you do, I guess.**

 **Anyways, now that the behemoth of a chapter is over, I can get into the array of reviews. Turns out disappearing for three weeks will leave a lot of things to respond to, so be prepared for that. Plus I've missed you guys, what can I say.**

 **HAIL KING DELIRIOUS: Then I have to imagine you'll enjoy this one.**

 **fictionelement777: Can't say I've ever played that game, and that scarf is the definition of OP. Doubles XP? Shit, I'm already struggling with balancing Jaune, so I doubt that'll pop up at any point.**

 **DuplicateUserName: Not a bad idea, but I feel like they don't actually need a secret lair, considering the vast majority of Menagerie think the White Fang are the good guys still. Not to say they couldn't have a lair, of course.**

 **Dragon lord Syed 101: I'm considering diverting a little, as I have done a couple times in the past, the only thing is I still haven't hashed out the timeline as of yet, so if I cut across, I might lock myself into something that breaks the sense of time in a significant way. I realise that this chapter wasn't actually all that plot-heavy, but the next chapter will definitely have events pick up the pace. I've got a couple ideas I want to consider, but that's for me to do and you all to read :P**

 **Steelrain66: Why bother with that? That might mean that Jaune, for a change, might actually have to be organized! And, seeing as I'm the one writing Jaune, that would mean I'd have to be organized, which, as anyone who's ever met me can attest, is not the case even slightly! In all seriousness, though, that's not a half-bad idea. It would mean that Jaune would have to actively have a moment to himself, which, considering his current circumstances, is a little bit more difficult than it sounds, but it does sort-of need to happen, or at least be addressed.**

 **blackwingww: As if that's not how we all play RPGs. I've still never completed FO4 because I get distracted every thirty seconds. I have a dope power armor collection though. Or I did until I started another new game, with a whole new modlist.**

 **Nagisa Tr: Like, in general? Or is it just my side-quests? Cause if it's mine, I'm sorry! If not though, yeah, I can understand why. Busywork, usually.**

 **drannakka: I do have a semi-solid plan for Penny, at the moment, but I'm putting developing it further on hold until we see Volume 7's finale. I just want to make sure that whilst I'm not sticking to canon, I at least can keep some of the better moments around. Pietro is a good example of this, I can't wait to figure out exactly what the hell his role will be.**

 **jhamm: If you want, I can change the name in the chapter's thank-you note, if you'd prefer. Also, yeah, I've put a lot of stuff in the spreadsheet over the past year and a bit. It's a monstrosity now, haha, and I'm glad there are people out there who get to witness the madness of my mind put to quote-unquote paper. I still need to work out a number of crafting things, too, it's one hell of a skill right now. Definitely the biggest one. I think there are at least six entire sheets dedicated to it, iirc.**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: Hey, blond edgy anime protagonist-bait! I'm kidding, I've always wanted to play some of the Fire Emblem games, I've just never had the hardware to do so. I'm pretty undecided on Jaune's hair, which is a weird sentence to say, but I'm thinking that if it is cut short, I'll at least have a good reason for it. Maybe he can ponytail it back and get an undercut. That'd look neat. Jaune's currently not actually wearing any armor, but the spreadsheet has a whole thing dedicated to armor, and is partially the reason Jaune is getting all this ore, to level up his Crafting skill. Once he achieves some higher levels he'll be able to craft some good armor, without a doubt.**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: Alrighty! Firstly, Jaune does have access to Runes, which serve as an alternate to D2's Masterwork system, so he can improve weapons and armor beyond the initial stats, though there are a number of items that have catalysts to improve them as a part of what I've written. I'm going to keep the details of that to myself for now, though. Secondly, I added this feature about an hour before your review went up, which is entertaining, so you can expect to see it probably next chapter. Thirdly, that was my intent with the Hunter Bounty stuff I worked up. I'm still working on a program to randomly generate Hunter Bounties and the rewards for them, though until I get around to actually populating a map of Remnant, I can't get the randomized locations done quite right. Gotta do that, thanks for the reminder. Fourthly, great idea, if it weren't for the fact that the global communications network has been severely damaged, and that Menagerie barely manages to get signal, and the wilds of Mistral definitely don't. Fifthly, we return to my first point, with the Rune system. I'm still working on the concept for enchantments, but they're getting a little... iffy. Still some stuff I gotta work out, like their purpose, which is kind of important :P. Don't apologize for being harsh, which at no point were you, I always understand that the vast majority of people are putting their thoughts out there in a positive or constructive light.**

 **IHateGenericCereal: Glad to see you're enjoying! I've said this a number of times over the past near-70 chapters (jesus), but Blake has always been one of the hardest characters for me to write. She's a strange blend of standoffish silence and sharp sarcasm, and no matter how I try it always seems to be a little off, at least, to me. Especially in this chapter, but that's neither here nor there.**

 **jedimasterb10: Of course there is. Why am I not surprised. As for Kali, well, she does knock out a trained fighter with a tea tray. Let's be honest, Kali is and always will be MVP. When the milf-fight occurs, and I promise, it won't occur, I imagine she'd come in first or second. It depends if there's a tea tray in the armory. Mando armor, though... damn it, now I gotta write Jaunedalorian. I also have to finish actually watching that, I only got like three episodes in.**

 **captaindickscratcher: Excellent name. Also, yeah, that's a good idea. Once you put it up I started thinking, and I've realized that it might be for the best, especially considering the amount of XP needed to actually level utility skills in the late game. I'll have to work out a little script for it, it won't be a immediate level, and I want to work out the cost equivalent, but thanks for the idea! (also technically Pyrrha is alive in Systema, so the joke, whilst good, is a little out of place, unless you want me to kill her, in which case consider it done.)**

 **armentho: I feel like I just sat through a finance lecture, which is good, because I suck at money-management. The concept of the System just giving him people's couch-coins is amazing, by the way, even if I don't care enough about the indepth economy of Remnant and the System enough to actually make mention of it. Call it a head-canon all you want, I absolutely love it. The System keeps all of Jaune's Lien in a special slot, so it would make sense that it would act like a bank account of sorts, albeit without interest. Which does spark the idea of Jaune investing, but if I wanted to write that, I'd have run out of better ideas :P Don't worry about rants, I always enjoy reading people's thoughts on stuff, and I've got plenty of time to do so. A lot of the time I read reviews on my phone while I'm out, anyways.**

 **FORD B: I am glad you are continuing to enjoy every chapter!**

 **Sum9: Hopefully this makes up for it lmao. I know a lot of people have their thoughts about encumbrance, but that does mostly stem from the actual physical play part of many of the games it occurs in. Reading about someone being slowed down due to being over-encumbered is a hell of a lot better than having to slowly walk back home yourself. Don't get me wrong, I'm going to be VERY generous with how much Jaune can carry, but it's less of a adventure-demotivator and more of a storage-investment-motivator. There's not much point in Jaune investing his Lien into something that lets him carry more stuff if he can carry an infinite amount of everything. Originally the inventory system was limited by a specific amount of slots, but I changed that pretty early on. Don't worry, though, it won't ever truly get in the way of the story. Also, technically this arc is about Jaune in Menagerie, though it is a sub-arc by technicality. Consider this an arc, and the regaining his team as the 'Grand Arc' as I've now decided to coin it. Pyrrha's going to be an interesting one to write, backstory-wise, and I'm going to have to start delving hard into pre-existing lore just to find the scraps. Glad you want more chapters, though!**

 **razmire: Oh, you just wait. Sure, it'll take Jaune evolving a few skills, or getting really, really lucky with a drop, but Jaune will be able to rip and tear at some point. The power will continue to increase, as is the trend with gamer fics. It'll take a little longer than most, of course, but that's the nature of what is effectively a slow-burn gamer. Huh. Also the Jak games were absolutely dope and I've 100% all three too many times to count. That god-damned Jak 2 level with the symbol of Mar haunts my dreams.**

 **Exiled Soul Nomad: It's really become a trend. At some point I have to end a chapter without it screwing Jaune over in some way. Keep all of you on your toes.**

 **Mad Hobbit: You make some good points, and I'm glad you like it. On the topic of Title Slots, I haven't decided on an upper limit yet, but I'm definitely being sparing with them. They can be incredibly powerful, especially late game, so I don't want to dole them out like candy on Halloween. Also is City of Heroes still alive? I thought they shut that down years ago, haven't played that in ages.**

 **Farfikuger: You make a great point, one that I'm trying to keep in mind. I like the dungeon content, of course, I wouldn't write it if I didn't, but I can definitely see how it could be stagnant after a bit. It's partially why this chapter pushes almost completely through a dungeon in the single chapter. I want to get into the meat of Menagerie soon, though, so you shouldn't have to worry. I may not have a concrete plan of action going forward, but at least I learned my lesson with the Assignment arc. That dragged on for far too long, in my opinion, and didn't have nearly enough stupid chapter titles.**

 **DiligentDunce: Gotcha. Will do.**

 **SirenAtlantica: Aha! Jaune avoids all chances of Disney's copyright-infringement by flying over the sand! What a brilliant strategy from the mad lad!**

 **Lazruth: If he ever actually faces Emerald I'm sure it might come in handy! Maybe!**

 **: Well, if you want to drop this that's your decision! I've always maintained that levels are less indicators of skill and more indicators of capability, and that anyone with a smart strategy can beat anyone with a statistical advantage, but hey, that's your prerogative. I hope you find something more to your taste!**

 **zeek17: Thank you for bringing that to my attention. I won't fix it, but I can say that it is a complete mistake, most likely a hold-over from a point where Jaune did have Aura in the beginning. Fun fact to anyone reading this, the entirety of the first six chapters of Systema played out completely different to how I published them! As for why the White Fang don't drop loot, I can't remember if Jaune kills them off the top of my head. If he did kill them himself, they would have dropped loot, but if they either were not killed, or killed by someone or something else, they wouldn't have. If he did kill them and they didn't drop loot, that's probably an error, though not one that has any real consequences in the long run. I don't think the White Fang have been charted yet, so I don't think they have any good loot anyways.**

 **Commenter: If you read my response to armentho, you'll understand my stance on Lien drops. I don't want to bog down Systema with stuff like in-depth economics and things like that. This is, supposedly, an action/adventure fic. Sure, there's a little bit of poorly written romance, and a hell of a lot of math, but for the most part, all of that math isn't necessarily written out for everyone to become bored of reading. Just take it with a grain of salt, I guess. It isn't going to be a massive plot point at any point, and I'll mostly use Jaune's wealth as a joke up until a certain point that I won't spoil.**

 **Allegingsky9788: As fun as that would be, I feel like Sienna is a very opinionated person. She's pretty much all for Adam's attempts at killing humans en-masse, including the Fall of Beacon, so I don't really think she's all that friendly towards Jaune, nor he to her. However, a White Fang quest-line is in the works!**

 **Kazotskye: I'm going to say that Jaune thinks they're still alive just from optimism, more than anything else. He's leaping towards the best possible result because he doesn't want to face the worst case scenario. You aren't entirely too far off from what is actually going on, either. Also that skill has actually existed in the spreadsheet for a few months at the least, so at least we know you and I tend to think on the same wavelengths!**

 **infinitydrivex: I'm pretty sure it isn't a plot-hole if I make a joke about it, right? That's how that works?**

 **Whew. Uh, sorry that my responses were almost the length of a chapter? Oops, I guess I was right about the three-week absence thing leaving more to talk about, haha. At least we can move on with our lives now.**

 **Hey, before I head off, maybe consider if you want to toss me some spare change? I have a Pa Treon if you wanna do that, not that you have to, mind you, just an idea. It's got perks, so it isn't me just taking your money and running, thankfully. I'd feel like a prick if I did that.**

 **And, as usual, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	70. Disarmed

**Man, these early months seem to be busier and busier with every passing year. Sorry about missing last week, I'm trying my best, but sometimes it just doesn't work out the way I need it to.**

 **Thanks to Maxstroid, Alvelvnor, Mark Vibadag, Justas Kondrusevicius and Fittzym for supporting me this month! I really appreciate it!**

* * *

If there was one thing Jaune was more experienced at than any other person on Remnant, it was having an intimate understanding of what it felt like to lose an arm.

He hadn't exactly been keeping count, but he knew it was at least twice. This might even be the third time, which did take him up to the level of unique, at least in the lost-limb department. He was now a statistical outlier, not that he wasn't already.

These were not the first thoughts that ran through Jaune's mind, nor the first actions he took.

Jaune had barely enough time to finish screaming in pain before he yanked himself backwards, a trail of red hot blood streaming from the ragged stump of his arm as he rolled to a half-standing position, watching in abject horror as the chest, coated in a sheen of his own blood, began to stand.

Two long, black limbs ending in sharp, white claws, a spindly torso of black flesh and white bone, and two even longer limbs, planted firmly on the ground.

It towered over the two of them, at least fifteen feet tall, a snarling head that was the blood-stained chest, sharpened teeth gleaming red along the edges.

Jaune barely had the time to grit his teeth and clutch at his slowly healing stump when the chest took a swing at him, sharpened claws gouging chunks of wood from the floor as it arced in his direction.

Blake opened fire, rounds pinging off the bone and burying into the flesh, and if it wasn't for that momentary distraction Jaune wouldn't have had the time to activate _Phaseshift_ , the claws passing through him in a single moment before the pain of his arm became his most pressing concern.

Jaune _Flash-Stepped_ backwards, already reaching into his inventory and withdrawing the only Erythraean Vial he had, decorking the vial and downing the red liquid in a single shot.

He felt a sharp burning pain well up from his stomach, pushing through his body and pulsing with an almost unnatural rhythm.

His arm's regeneration was sped up dramatically, bone, sinew and flesh pulsing out from the severed stump at an incredible rate, making him grit his teeth.

He wasn't out of combat, though, and the Grimm was focused on him with a disturbing intensity, completely ignoring Blake, even as Gambol Shroud sliced at blackened flesh.

So, even as the pain of his arm rapidly regrowing made his eyes water, Jaune leveled his one remaining palm at the approaching monster, and cast a _Gravity Infused Mana Cannon_.

It didn't hit centre-mass, his aim wasn't anywhere near as good as he needed it to be in his current situation, but it did what he needed it to do, hitting with a pulse of purple-black energy, sending the Grimm backwards, no longer tethered to the concept that was gravity, or at least for the moment.

It bought Jaune enough time to re-thread his arm back in his sleeve, the clothing thankfully undamaged, and enough time to snap Predator up in his other hand, firing two rounds into the creature before it landed once more, already moving back towards him.

Jaune had all of one moment to _Observe_ the creature before he leapt backwards and upwards, feet finding placement firmly on the wall as he activated _Surface Walk_ , getting him just out of reach of what now knew as a Mimic.

 **[Opal Mimic]**

 **[Grimm, Rare, Level 65]**

 **[HP: 24,599/48,750]**

Gravity seemed to work a treat before, Jaune surmised, and he placed his hand against the wall, concentrating.

He'd never summoned an Elemental whilst standing horizontally on a wall before, but he was glad he decided to summon Gravitus, the Gravity Elemental appearing in a fluctuating burst of light, floating in the air, unconcerned about the fact that it was in the air.

It was time for Jaune's somewhat-tried but definitely-true strategy.

Jaune flung a _Mana Tether_ out, the tendrils lancing out once the orb landed on the Opal Mimic, and, nearly without instruction, Gravitus reached both crystalline limbs out, an inky black void appearing on the ground beneath the still-swiping Mimic as it tried to reach Jaune, undeterred by anything else around it.

The _Blackhole_ formed completely, and Jaune could see chunks of flesh and bone being stripped off the Grimm, as it slowly became smaller and smaller, more and more injured.

Once the _Blackhole_ had worn off, Gravitus no longer glowing anywhere near as intensely, Jaune allowed himself to drop from the wall, staring in morbid fascination at the creature of darkness that had taken his arm as it writhed on the ground, spindly limbs devoid of nearly all muscle and flesh still twitching out in his direction. That single-minded focus to kill, and to kill him, in particular, was still present, even in its current state, missing both legs as it was.

If Jaune had been a weaker person than he was, mentally, he would've felt pity for it.

Instead, he buried the blade of Crocea Mors deep into its midsection, watching in grim satisfaction as it leaked what little black blood was left into the wood beneath it, pooling around the tip of his sword.

 **[Raid: Dustcairn Mine Cleared!]**

 **[You've gained 7,098,420 XP and 8,580 Lien! You've acquired 1 Opal Key!]**

 **[For killing an Opal Mimic, an unlocked Opal Chest has been dropped!]**

 **[You have leveled up twice, to Level 66, and gained +10 Stat Points!]**

 **[Hunter Bounty Complete!]**

 **[Search and Destroy: Dustcairn Mine]**

 **[** _ **Clear Dustcairn Mine of Grimm.**_ **]**

 **[Reward: 'The Nature of Nature' Skill Book]**

 **[For clearing Dustcairn Mine, a reward has been revealed!]**

 **[Achievement Unlocked!]**

 **[Raider: Clear a Raid.]**

 **[Claim Reward!]**

It was with the final notification that Jaune heard a noise, the sound of wood grinding against wood, and both he and Blake looked towards the far wall, watching in slight surprise as a section of it lowered.

Jaune took a tentative step towards it, wary of any more traps, Grimm or anything else Remnant wanted to throw at him today, but there was nothing.

His semblance had never lied to him before, and he had no reason to believe it would now, so he took another step, followed by another, until he was walking with only a slightly shaky pace.

It was a small room, more of a nook than anything else, devoid of any contents aside from a small pedestal, atop of which sat a black leather-bound book, highlights of red and white running down the spine.

Blake was close behind, her attention piqued, made doubly-so by the fact that the reward appeared to be some form of literature.

Jaune placed one hand against the cover, wary of whatever it was, but nothing leaped out and gnawed his arm off again, so he lifted the front of the book, peering at the ancient, yellowed first page.

He stared at it for a few seconds before he shrugged. "Well, I can't make anything out. It's just random scrawls. Make sense to you, Blake?"

Blake had been practically peering over his shoulder, but at his mention, sidled past, taking the book into her hands and looking more closely. "Not that I can tell. It looks less like scribbles and more like some kind of old language, though. The scrawls are too repetitive to be anything other than letters or phrases."

Jaune decided to _Observe_ it whilst Blake flicked through, seeing if at any point the yellow paper had anything distinctively understandable in it.

 **[Grimmonomicon]**

 **[An old, Grimmleather-bound book filled with ancient, yellowed paper, covered in unintelligible markings.]**

Jaune read the name and description aloud, though it didn't spark any kind of understanding in either of them.

Blake handed it back to Jaune who, upon one final cursory inspection, stowed it in his inventory.

He backed out of the recently-hidden nook and stepped back towards the now-disintegrated remains of the Opal Mimic, drawing his sword and giving the now-Opal Chest a poke with the tip.

When it didn't move or react in any way, Jaune deemed it safe, opening it and tentatively reaching inside.

He really, really didn't want it to snap closed on him again, that hadn't been fun, and he was glad when it didn't, instead his hand reaching further in than he'd expected and withdrawing all the items inside.

 **[You've acquired 6 Uncut Amethyst, 3 Maple Saplings, 16 Adamantite Ore and 1 Orichalcite Ore.]**

Well, far be it for Jaune to complain about free items. Well, quote-unquote free. He'd had to fight hard to get here, and harder still not to die, but he wasn't going to complain. Adamantite and Orichalcite Ores? He was more than happy to get items to experiment with, and show off. Ruby was going to go hyper when he met back up with her.

"C'mon, we've spent more than enough time in here. Let's get back out."

Blake couldn't agree more. The both of them smelled of sweat, dust and Grimmblood, and Jaune definitely smelled like actual blood. They needed baths, preferably long, warm ones.

She defied the typical cat stereotype in that regard, at least.

* * *

Evening sunlight barely filtered over the dunes, leaving the air as dusky as it could without actually being night, and Jaune had to admit, the desert, whilst dangerous, was definitely a pretty sight, the purples and oranges creating a beautiful image that he dedicated to his mind.

It was picturesque, and he didn't want to let this memory slip. His first time away from Vale proper, and this had to be the most memorable vista he'd seen so far.

The two Crimson Chests and the equal amount of Citrine Chests that sat just next to the mine's office was nearly as nice a sight, he had to admit.

He knew these ones weren't Mimics, thankfully, having already given them tentative kicks, which had only served to make him stub his toe, but he hadn't lost a leg, so he'd rather that over the pain of being somewhat-temporarily limbless.

Rapid, random amputation was definitely not one of his hobbies.

Blake stood watch, carefully scanning the horizon as Jaune knelt down and used the keys he had in his inventory to open all the chests, quickly emptying them into his inventory, not even looking at the notifications until they had all combined into the one, for ease of reading.

He thanked anything and everything his semblance did that. Going through a massive list would've been more of a pain than he thought he could be bothered with.

 **[You have acquired 10 Copper Ore, 35 Coal, 1 Hearthstone, 27 Iron Ore, 5 Mithril Ore, 1 Viridis Vial, 1 Uncut Emerald, 22 Sand, 3 Caeruleum Vials, 8 Grade III Space Dust Crystals and 76,633 Lien!]**

It was a veritable hoard of goodies, Jaune realised, and a profitable one at that, not even including the Lien that he'd acquired. The Dust most importantly, not only worth quite a bit, but it was a kind he'd never acquired before, though he had heard of it before.

More importantly, he'd heard of its reality-bending properties before. It practically powered almost all forms of mecha-shift weaponry. He knew Ruby had spent a small fortune on it for Crescent Rose.

He dismissed the notifications, standing and stretching his arms wide in that way that shouldn't have been as satisfying as it was. "Let's get out of here. It's late, and for a change we both need to get all this Grimm muck off of us."

Blake looked down at herself and winced. "Right. I'd almost forgotten."

Shirdal appeared in front of both of them, and Jaune ruffled the feathers behind his mask as he climbed up, Blake joining him up there, and the two quickly found themselves in the air once more, headed for Kuo Kuana once more.

It wasn't a strictly short flight, but it felt like it. Jaune barely paid attention to what was going on around him, instead turning his mind inwards, and towards his inventory.

There was a lot of stuff in there from his days delving deep into dungeons, mostly crafting materials he was yet to use. Bits and pieces he was planning on supplementing, when he got back to Kuo Kuana, but it wasn't the Copper or even the Iron that really stood out to him. The most notable of the list of crafting materials had to be the three new kinds of ore. Mithril, Adamantite and Orichalcite. Three ores he'd only ever heard of in fiction. Magical metals, or so the books, movies and games said.

He knew his semblance was affecting the world, but the idea that it could create entirely new materials that had never existed before was a new surprise. Well, not strictly speaking new, seeing as he'd gotten Mithril back in the Hallowed Bay, but the point remained the same.

Exactly what effects was his semblance having on the world that he didn't know about? Hell, was his semblance creating these dungeons? Was it his fault that those miners had died, or was he just another casualty in a long line of unfortunate wielders?

Questions without answers. Or, at least, questions that were refused answers. Maybe if the past wielders he'd spoken to would be a little more helpful, he'd have some kind of answer, but as it was, he was a little stumped.

Well, more than a little. Being a little confused was practically his default range of emotion.

He didn't keep his focus on the moral implications of his semblance for long. He couldn't exactly do anything about it, regardless. He was just going to have to use it to the best of his ability to help as many people as he could, if only to offset the damage it might cause.

Instead, he started considering exactly what he'd need to do to use the new metals he'd discovered. And by considering, he really meant tapping on one of the ores, if only to bring up a description of it.

 **[Orichalcite Ore]**

 **[A chunk of deep green ore used in the creation of Orichalcum. Requires** _ **Crafting**_ **Level 55 to process.]**

Oh. Well, that put that idea a ways back in his to-do list. With a current _Crafting_ Level of only 15, Jaune wasn't going to be making anything from Orichalcum anytime soon.

Or maybe he would, depending on the amount of XP he'd get from the mass of materials he was planning on purchasing.

Jaune moved his attention away from his inventory and over to his admittedly near-empty achievements tab, under his player menu. A place he'd rarely touched, much to his disappointment.

Though he'd technically doubled his achievement total, which was cool. The Raider Achievement was pulsating a lovely green, and Jaune tapped it, claiming the reward for achieving the, uh, achievement.

 **[Reward Claimed!]**

 **[Hunter Bounty Boards are now accessible to you!]**

 **[A Hunter Bounty Board will provide you with various Hunter Bounties to be completed, awarding you with various rewards such as Lien, resources, and reputation!]**

Well, that was appreciated. More work wasn't necessarily a 'good' thing, by moral standards, but it was technically his job, so he appreciated it all the same. Getting rewards from it, though, well, he could definitely get behind that.

Speaking of rewards, he had the reward from his first Hunter Bounty to claim. He quickly navigated to his Quest log, opening the second tab to get access to the Bounty log, and claimed the reward for the bounty.

A skill book, by the name of The Nature of Nature. It had a certain ring to it, at least. No boring essay-like encyclopedia of unspaced blocks of text for him. Not that he'd have to read it anyway, considering that, regardless of how entertaining it may or may not be, the book was blank.

Jaune shrugged, allowing it to glow blue as he absorbed the information, the book glowing blue before it disintegrated between his fingers. They'd started doing that, he didn't know why.

 **[Skill Learned!]**

 **[** _ **Gathering (Active):**_ _Thanks to the System, you are now skilled in the searching, hunting and gathering of natural resources from areas in the world such as mining, log-cutting and fishing._ _ **Level 1; XP 0/12.**_ **]**

Well, it wasn't a combat skill, but Jaune hadn't been expecting it to be. Another over-arching skill like _Crafting_ , he supposed, with the skill covering a number of things. Mining was of particular interest to him, but fishing was also something he'd have to try, if only to satiate Blake. It'd at least get him some brownie points, and maybe help convince her to come with him down into the Hallowed Bay.

Maybe she'd acquiesce to a long swim if there was the promise of freshly caught fish at the end.

That was, of course, if he could actually catch any fish. It might make him able to use a fishing rod, but there was a wealth of difference between understanding and execution.

As with most things, he supposed. Like his own semblance.

Again, his mind wandered back to the place it seemed to always be stuck up on. At some point he'd have to give in and admit that there was just no way to have all the answers.

That wasn't this moment, though, as Blake gave his shoulder a shake. "We're being followed."

Jaune turned his head around, peering over Blake's shoulder. They were, in fact, being followed.

"Nevermore? Really? No rest for the wicked, I guess."

"Or us," Blake replied. "Do you want me to fire, or do you have something that wouldn't cost so much Lien?"

Jaune didn't answer verbally, but his outstretched arm fired a _Mana Flak_ out into the small cluster of Nevermore, watching in satisfaction as it detonated within their grouping, shredding black feathers and flesh alike.

"That'll do it. The Grimm have been getting more and more aggressive lately, huh."

He didn't get a reply as a weird feeling flooded his body and mind. "What the-"

 **[A new entry in the Grimmonomicon has been uncovered!]**

Why couldn't it just say so!? Why did it have to make him shudder uncontrollably?

"Jaune, are you alright?" Blake asked, a level of concern entering her voice that wasn't normally there, for good reason.

Jaune nodded, running one hand down what little of Shirdal's flank he could reach, reassuring his mount that he was indeed fine. "Yeah, yeah. That book has some kick to it."

"The book you just read?" Blake asked, quirking an eyebrow.

Oh. Right.

"The Grimmonomicon. Apparently I just uncovered a new entry in it."

"Which means?"

Blake's question was a good one. One he really didn't have an answer to. "Something good, I hope. If it's bad, well, let's just hope it's good. I've had enough of bad stuff happening for one day."

His periphery saw Blake turn to look at the sky. "It's a new day. We've got plenty of time for unfortunate incidents."

Jaune nodded sagely. "Ah, my mistake. Probably bad, then."

It could wait until he at least landed, though. Actually, scratch that. He was going to leave it until he woke up.

* * *

Morning had broken hours earlier, and it was nearly noon when Jaune clambered out of bed, still drowsy. Splashing cold water in his face helped alleviate some of the sleepiness, but it didn't nullify the feeling completely.

He wasn't normally a fan of tea, but maybe that would help. Or coffee, but he disliked that even more. What could he say, he was a juice kinda guy. Most days.

There were days where he needed something stronger, like today, but he didn't really think they had Saph's secret concoction on hand.

Man, that had nearly gotten all of them in serious trouble with their father before. A close call if ever there was one.

He'd had a point at some… point. Man his internal monologue needed to read a thesaurus.

Oh, right. He was tired, and the kitchen sounded like a great place to stop before he reached into his inventory and possibly pulled out a book that could end the world.

Or maybe it was just a book. He didn't really know, but something called the Grimmonomicon, bound in Grimmleather and impossibly ancient, well, it wasn't exactly a recipe for a book containing children's stories.

Or a recipe for a recipe book, though, now that he thought about it, maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing to get a hold of. Maybe some instruction manuals while he was at it.

What was he doing again? Oh yeah, breakfast. He wandered into the kitchen, said a bleary-eyed good morning to Ghira, who looked surprised to see him, and set about making himself some tea and toast.

"Late night?" Ghira asked, once Jaune had taken a seat at the bench, blinking away the majority of the blurriness.

Jaune 'mmhmm-ed' in response, practically downing half his tea in a single gulp before he felt good enough to speak. "Cleared Dustcairn Mine of Grimm yesterday. Productive day, but a long one."

Ghira somehow managed to look even more surprised. "Some of my best wrote that off as unrecoverable."

If somewhat-sleep-deprived Jaune was anything, he wasn't one to play coy. "I'm not surprised. The Grimm in there were dangerous. I lost an arm to one of them."

Ghira stared at him.

"I got better."

"I could've sworn you've made that joke before," Blake muttered, in lieu of a greeting, rubbing her eyes.

Jaune shrugged. "Probably. It's been a while, I can't remember."

Ghira's gaze left Jaune and went to his daughter. "You didn't think to tell me you were headed there?"

Blake stalled for a moment, deciding to instead finish making her tea, quite obviously contemplating her answer.

"I didn't think to, no. I'll make sure I do so in the future."

It was diplomatic, and professional, and definitely not what Ghira had expected, though Jaune could understand why. It wasn't his business, of course, so he'd stay out of it.

If there was one thing he knew, involving himself in family issues like this would only serve to alienate everyone.

There was a difference between this and Weiss's situation, of course, but he'd burn that bridge when he got to it.

Jaune decided to leave the two to what was apparently going to be a longer discussion, from the looks they were both wearing, instead stepping outside, the almost-midday sunlight streaming in with a warm, coastal northerly wind sweeping past, blowing his hair from the back of his head to the front.

He spluttered a little in surprise, slicking it back as best he could. It was getting long, now, and most definitely untamed. He wondered if there was a barber in town that wouldn't mind cutting the hair of a human.

It wasn't important, nor anywhere near the top of his quote-unquote to-do list.

He took a seat in one of the chairs, placing his half-drunk mug of tea on the coaster on the short table next to it, and reached into his inventory, the warm sea breeze doing its best to lull him back to sleep, to no avail.

Instead, he withdrew the Grimmonomicon, gently prying open the Grimmleather-bound covers and browsing through the old, yellowed pages of undecipherable, runic text.

At least, until he reached a certain point, and then suddenly, it was in a language he could understand, with words, letters and symbols he recognized.

Well, in a sense. It was still the prior illegible runes, but his semblance was projecting a little window just above it, easily translated for his viewing pleasure.

 **[Nevermore Entry]**

 **[A large avian Grimm with many, many feathers, the Nevermore is capable of flinging these deadly feathers like projectiles at their opponents, with lethal accuracy. Surprisingly maneuverable for their size, they can prove to be dangerous foes.]**

 **[Kill Tracker: 7]**

 **[Reward at: 100]**

"So that's what it does," Jaune said to himself, reading through. "Huh. Rewards are always nice, at least."

He put the book back in his inventory, quickly finishing his tea before he stood up, stretching with a final yawn.

He had a destination in mind, a goal to achieve, a bounty to fully complete, and a lot of supplies to purchase.

It was time to go spend a lot of Lien.

* * *

 **I'm not entirely sure about this chapter, but considering how long it took to actually get up, I'm just going to have to accept it as it is, for what it is. The next chapter is going to have the overarching plot really kick into gear, but it is important to note that not everything is going to have immense consequences. Sometimes, Jaune just has to do a fetch quest, or smelt a ton of ores. That's just a quirk of the System, and the way progress works. I could skip over it, and most likely will, in the future, but for his first proper 'craft everything' sessions, I at least need to cover that. Just getting that little rant off my chest, don't mind me.**

 **Before I get into specific reviews, I'd just like to point out that so, so many people said something about their hatred of mimics :P Good to see I accomplished what I was after!**

 **Kazotskye: If you thought that was the extent of my Doom references you just wait until one of the Artifacts pops up.**

 **redstonepowder: Gonna be honest, you could say the same about quite literally most anime, most manga, most animated shows, most TV and most movies. It's almost like a series of tropes eventually become what is known as a genre, and a bunch of genre-specific tropes become a sub-genre. I never denied I was doing what I've done, but I think it's safe to say I've written one of the most regularly-updated gamer-fics for RWBY. Not to toot my own horn, or anything. I don't think I've suckered anyone into anything, and implying that I have is kind of insulting to anyone who does enjoy this sort of thing.**

 **HAIL KING DELIRIOUS: Will he summon a dragon? Probably. As for Runes, I've actually had the majority of them written and charted for a while, and I'm just working out a few kinks with application and adding a couple skill-boosting ones. Your point about Skyrim enchanting was a good one, though, and it is kind of how some of the runes work.**

 **FrostyChops: It seems like with every week that passes the collectathon gets more and more in-depth :D (Shh, I've even got secret summons now!)**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: There are so many good ideas for Mimics, if only it was like that in Systema. Unfortunately (or fortunately), it's effectively a variant or sub-type of Geist, and has no actual physical drop aside from what it possesses, which is almost the same as the regular Geist. Riding a Mimic would be an excellent way to terrify any opponents, though, even more than any other of Jaune's summons.**

 **ZHsteven: I wouldn't have a clue how to work a giant plant monster in as a Grimm, but I'll give it a shot. It might only pop up as a Dungeon Obstacle, probably not as a Grimm, per se.**

 **Steelrain66: Man, you think it's been a while since you've read it? I went looking for a phrase I'd written in one of the early chapters, and couldn't even find it. I don't even know where anything is in my own writing anymore, that's how large this is now. I can only imagine what it's like for the bigger fics, 500k+ would be devastating to try and navigate. It's reached a point where I might have to read my own stuff :P. Blake will be around for our feline summon, too, don't worry. That one has one of my favorite names, too.**

 **Nagisa Tr: I've actually barely played any Dark Souls (I'm really bad at them), but I have to assume that's how it works with upgrading weapons, as far as I've seen. I actually do have a system in place for upgrading weapons, but it's actually a much more passive system, with a single-use item. It's mostly dependent on crafting levels, and weapon quality. It's the same reason why Tranquility and the other PACKs are Rough quality.**

 **Nice: That's some dedication to a joke right there.**

 **typhonyx: Cheers for the reminder, I've really got to keep it in mind. I think having Jaune just becoming desensitized to violence in general is a pretty good direction to head, considering all the things that are happening and have happened, so maybe we'll see how that plays out. Of course, this is subject to change if I need to.**

 **jedimasterb10: If Jaune were to get a cybernetic replacement, he'd be constantly paying for repairs and replacements at this rate. Also I'm not quite sure how System Body would handle a deliberate amputation. Huh. Interesting thing to think about, even more interesting to write.**

 **IcyStream: He does already have the guitar. It's a shame canon won't give us scruffy-Jaune, he'd look great with a bit of a beard.**

 **DuplicateUserName: I've been waiting exactly 69 chapters to make that joke, and I will admit I laughed out loud when I posted it, because I have the emotional maturity of a preteen.**

 **HungrySnack: That's the line! That's the line I wrote that I couldn't find! Ah-hah! Thank you!**

 **Tsu no mumei: Reminds me of the story about the party that entered a village that was completely made up of mimics. Or the story about the Gazebo, but that one just makes me laugh. As for Jaune effectively eliminating the Dust market, I can't help but feel like he's got more pressing things to be concerned about. There is a way to make Dust in the System, but Jaune's going to have to figure that out.**

 **paradox0.5white: Heh. Out of hand.**

 **Fyr RedNight: I've decided to go back and rewatch all the Menagerie episodes of V4 and V5, just to make sure I'm getting close enough to her canon character, but I suspect that might take me a bit to get around to. Hopefully I can bring her a little more into the foreground with the next Bound Soul.**

 **Anonymous4.O: Let's be honest, I'm not the first writer to remove a limb or six :P. There's something about biomechanical prosthesis that really gets me. Might just be my Deus Ex: HR playing from a long time ago.**

 **Sperance: Are we sure the tally isn't three? Or am I mixing up his injuries. Actually, now that I think about it, losing limbs should probably be an achievement.**

 **Biowind: From the amount of reviews? So many people. I love it!**

 **ButterBeep: Alrighty! Hope you find something a little more to your taste!**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: I've mentioned it before, but your 'live-tweet' method of reviewing is still funny as hell to read. Do you think it would be insensitive to get Blake a pair of earmuffs with kitty ears on them?**

 **Fake Account dammit: Well... it would, if it hadn't punctured through his Aura. Ouch.**

 **daemon452: It's not exponential, though. That would be the case if it was exponential growth, but it isn't. I don't remember the actual term for it, but if you were to graph the rate at which XP required increases, it'd be a sharp curve of some sort.**

 **Decoder115: Your reaction is exactly why I did it! Glad you've stuck around!**

 **armentho: You've got some good points, but the first thing that popped into my head is that stupid 'discombobulate' meme. God I love that thing.**

 **eprince200: I used to play Destiny and D2 quite a bit, but I had to stop. Too many DLCs, not enough time and money, it was soul-sapping at that point. Of course, a relative of mine plays the crap outta D2, so I can at least see any Exotics in action if I want to. Thorn or Gjallarhorn, they're a little obvious, but something like Rat King, Sturm/Drang or Leviathan's Breath would fit a little better. The NPC Leveling needs to be worked on, I'm still trying to work that out in complete detail, it's taking a bit of time to implement. Lemons is a complicated question, for me, with a complicated answer. It's not what I'm here to write, and I'll write it only if necessary. Don't get me wrong, I can appreciate a well-written piece of smut any day, but without context or expectation it doesn't really achieve anything, and comes across more like pandering. Thanks for the review, though!**

 **Guest: If I remember right, all the Stat Perks have been written up already. There's space for other perks, of course, but I don't think Jaune gets any kind of prediction perk from any Stat Perks. He does get something similar later down the line with AGI, though.**

 **Whew, that was a bit. Glad to have all of your reviews, I delight in reading them all! So, so many of you latched onto the mimic thing, it's really funny to me.**

 **Anyways, that's all from me for this week! If you ever want to toss me some change, or get access to the complete System spreadsheet, it's available over on my Pa Treon!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	71. Hidden in Plain Sight

**Another absence. I say I'll be back, and then I disappear. So, just to hopefully break that curse, I'll just say here's a chapter, and say nothing else, except sorry!**

 **Thank you to Alvelvnor, Maxstroid, Robert Waldron, Justas Kondrusevicius, Mark Vibadag, Handwran and Fittzym for supporting me this month! I love you guys!**

* * *

Ninety-two thousand, three-hundred Lien, and he was suddenly five-hundred Copper Ore, five-hundred Tin Ore and three-hundred Iron Ore richer.

Another expenditure of five-thousand and he'd effectively rented out the store's forge, for the next few hours, at least. Five, to be exact.

Jaune started working, placing chunks of ore in the furnace, step by step, melting down the tin and copper, his semblance simplifying the process to a point where it took him roughly a minute to turn two pieces of ore into one bar of Bronze.

And then all of a sudden five hours was up.

Jaune blinked, and then decided to blink a second time, confusion etched into his face. Where had all the time gone? He had barely noticed the passage of reality, so lost in the peaceful monotony of crafting.

In fact, his _Crafting_ skill had gone up to Level 20, and his Designer title had gone up a rank, to Apprentice.

And he'd been paying so little attention he hadn't really even noticed.

He dusted down his hands, patting them against his pants and giving his arms a quick stretch. He'd paid for the five hours, and he'd used the five hours. He wasn't even sure if they'd let him keep going, even if he did pay. They had to close up at some point, or so he assumed.

Then again, he'd been probably one of their biggest customers in a while. Maybe they'd let it slide… No, he didn't want to push his luck. Hell, he was surprised that they even sold to him in the first place. There weren't many human-friendly faunus in Menagerie, or anywhere else, for that matter.

Something the White Fang wasn't helping. He'd have to speak with Blake about her plans, he couldn't stay in Menagerie forever.

Jaune stepped out of the workshop, wiping the sweat from his brow, admiring the evening view, the warm air cool on his skin just simply from comparison. It was much warmer back inside the forge, naturally, that came with the heat from the actual, physical forge. It wasn't easy to alloy metals without it.

It wasn't too long a trek back to the Belladonna household, especially when he knew the way, but he still stalled for a moment.

Something felt… off, with the atmosphere.

Jaune looked around. Where were all the people? He didn't think they'd be hiding from him, he's seen this very street far more bustling.

Were people just turning in for an early night or something? Was there an event?

Jaune's hand strayed to his side, comfortably sitting against the handle of Crocea Mors.

Something was definitely wrong.

He moved faster, picking up speed. Not fast enough to be considered a sprint, but enough that he was covering ground.

He could feel his _Sixth Sense_ tingling faintly, keeping his attention, eyes tracing his surroundings.

He'd had his suspicions before, but now it had evidence, not easily explained away.

His _Sixth Sense_ was becoming increasingly more fervent in its warnings, pulsing at a steadier and steadier rate in the back of his mind.

He cast his eyes nearly skyward, keeping his gaze even as he traced his sight over the many rooftops and trees that littered this end of Kuo Kuana.

There was definitely something up there. Someone.

Another, approaching from his left, in the alley?

A third, behind him. A broader target, easier to spot, if you knew where to look.

Jaune was thankful he did.

"Is there something I can help you with?" He voiced, loud enough that he knew they couldn't ignore him. "Sneaking up on me never works!"

The three faunus made themselves known, stepping into his line of sight.

Or rather, two of them did. The third descended from the air, powerful wings folding up and tucking behind his shoulders.

Bat wings, from the look of them.

The other two were equally different. The one behind him, the easiest to spot, was also the easiest to identify, a large horn protruding from his forehead. A rhino faunus, most likely, especially considering the sheer width the man possessed.

The final one, emerging from the alley, Jaune couldn't tell the trait of. In fact, if it weren't for the purplish-color of her hands, he'd never have known. Well, aside from the knowledge that they were White Fang.

That he could tell simply from the uniforms.

None of them decided to respond to his prior conversation-starter, so he figured he would try again, this time adding a portion of his _Intimidating Presence_ to the words, just to give them that little extra kick

"What do you want?"

His question came out with just as much force as he'd been expecting, and despite that it didn't seem to faze any of them.

Instead, the one with the wings gave a shrug. "Well, we were supposed to keep you distracted, but you did that all by yourself."

Jaune found his body tense up even further than it had been moments before. "What?"

The woman spoke this time, one purplish hand coming to rest on her hip, palm against the handle of a knife. "Not a normal thing for Hunters to do, working that long in a place like that."

Jaune drew Crocea Mors, holding the sword loosely in one hand, eyeing up what was becoming more and more likely to be his new opponents. "Not what I was asking."

The largest of the three spoke next, his voice carrying with a firm gravitas. "Your questions do not matter."

Well, that made things a little more simple. That didn't mean he wasn't going to ask, though. "What were you supposed to be keeping me from?"

None of the three answered. Instead, the woman and the large man drew their weapons, the one with wings taking to the sky.

"I guess you'll just have to tell me after I beat you," Jaune remarked, giving Crocea Mors a quick flourish, his gaze scanning the three. _Observe_ activated at his silent prompting, and the sudden influx of information was exactly what he needed.

Yuma Myotis, Level 50. Trifa Sciata, Level 48. Keras Sondai, Level 53.

The three of them were underleveled, at least compared to him. Of course, there were three of them, and they weren't Grimm. They could think, and work together.

That didn't matter, though. Jaune wasn't worried about what they could do to him. He was more worried about what they were supposed to be keeping him from. All the more reason to finish this quickly.

Jaune went to move, leaning into his movement, but the hand of the woman, Trifa, came up in a flash, and suddenly he was bound, a sticky webbing wrapping around his body and holding him tight, the string-like trail coming from her hands.

Jaune quirked his eyebrow in surprise, finding himself unable to even wriggle, struggling seeming to only bind him further.

The largest of the three, Keras, was moving in as swift a man that size could, a massive maul wound back for a swing. Jaune definitely didn't want to be on the receiving end of that, but he had a couple moments to consider his options.

He decided on a course of action in less than a moment, activating _Phaseshift_ and watching in satisfaction as both the webbing and the rhino faunus's maul passed straight through him, and he deactivated it the moment he was clear, ducking underneath another blast of sticky web from Trifa, Crocea Mors barely managing to be deflected by her knife.

He would've taken a follow-up swing if Yuma hadn't swept down from the sky, a bare-knuckled fist hitting Jaune in the side, the force from the dive pushing him clear of what was very apparently a spider faunus, Crocea Mors clattering to the pavement.

Jaune slid backwards as Yuma manipulated the punch into a grapple, his other arm coming up to wrap around Jaune's neck in a sleeper hold.

Jaune wasn't about to let that slide. He's spent enough time around Yang to know exactly how to break that. He took a step back, his foot straying behind Yuma's leg, and he grabbed, lifting and slamming the bat faunus into the ground.

Yuma grunted as he hit, but he rolled clear, and Jaune was too busy to prevent him from doing so, having to roll himself, Keras' maul nearly grazing his head with a brutal uppercut that would have more than likely taken his head off if it had hit.

He went to look for his sword, only to see Trifa webbing it to the floor, so that was out of the question for the time being.

Well, he'd channeled his inner Yang. Maybe it was time to channel his inner Pyrrha, too.

Crocea Mors' sheath unfolded into a shield, and Jaune quickly used it to smack the incoming maul to the side, watching as it landed with a reverberating thud against the ground, and he quickly used it as a springpoint, leaping up and hitting Keras in the face with a _Shield Bash_ , watching as the man took a step back, losing his grip on his weapon.

Jaune followed it up with a more complicated strike, landing the point of his shield against the large man's jaw.

The teen then proceeded to watch in detached awe as the bone simply shattered underneath the force of the blow, Keras spitting out a mouthful of blood and teeth.

Well, attempting to spit out was probably a more accurate description. It was difficult to do when the entirety of his lower jaw was hanging open at an angle that was definitely not healthy. His Aura was already patching up the wound, but it seemed the man wasn't so competent that he could keep up his Aura while stunned.

Jaune didn't have any more time to spare, though, as a knife skittered off his shield.

His other hand reached out and grabbed Trifa by the wrist, yanking her around and into the path of Yuma, who crashed into the three of them in a tangle of limbs.

They broke apart in a flurry, scattering backwards to gain just a little bit of breathing room, but even that little bit wasn't enough to stop Yuma from pushing forwards, palms outstretched, attempting another grapple.

He was intercepted, though, as a snake of white and gold struck without warning, coils wrapping around the bat faunus's neck and tightening.

Yuma hit the ground knees first, clutching weakly at Ouroboros, but the Taijitu summon wasn't going to give any ground, and soon the White Fang agent passed out, blue in the face.

That left Trifa, and one very pissed off Keras, who was charging at Jaune, horn pointed straight at him.

Like a matador with his life on the line, Jaune stepped out of the way with a quick flourish, and decided to skip the rest of the display, throwing his shield at Trifa, who barely managed to duck out of the way.

But he'd taken a leaf out of Pyrrha's book yet again, and used it as merely a distraction. A way to break visual acuity and get close.

His fist, coated in Mana, hit the woman in the face, and she hit the floor with a loud crack, blood streaming from what was definitely a broken nose. She almost looked like she wanted to resist the unconsciousness, but as her Aura broke, so too did her will, and she passed out much like Yuma had, though not in the same way.

That left the biggest of the three, Keras. Jaune wasn't sure he could knock someone like him out. Trying a chokehold on him would be like attempting to wrap his hands around a tree trunk. Sure, it was possible, but there were so many variables to making that happen that it just wasn't worth considering.

The man was charging again. He'd lost his temper, and with it his reason, and thus had presented Jaune with a very simple solution.

Jaune placed one hand against the ground, and watched as _Terrakinesis_ lifted a thick wall between the two of them.

A single moment passed of silence, before a cacophonous crack sounded out through the street, followed by a loud thump.

Jaune restored the street to its former glory, lowering the wall he'd created back into the ground, and eyed his handiwork, Ouroboros slithering back up Jaune's arm and back inside his sleeve, where he'd been summoned, coiling around Jaune's neck, though without the choking intent it had with Yuma.

Jaune didn't have time to stay and wait for them to wake up, to interrogate them. Instead, he quickly freed Crocea Mors, turned, beginning the sprint back to the Belladonna household.

And considering _Surface Walk_ would allow him to travel as the Nevermore flies, well, he'd get there even quicker.

He could only hope it would be quick enough.

* * *

Electricity crackled as it lanced around her, the metal that acted as its conduit nearly striking her in the thigh, if not for her semblance. Departing her body in a puff of smoke and leaving behind a clone made of shadow was always an interesting sensation, even more so when the clone was more solid.

"Ilia, please! You don't have to do this! Just talk to me!" She cried out, desperately trying to placate with her former best friend.

"The time for talk has been over for so long, Blake! You betrayed us!" Ilia cried out in return, another lash from her whip nearly landing true.

"No! I never betrayed the Faunus!" Blake shouted. "Adam betrayed us all, Ilia! Surely you can see that! All he wants is revenge, not freedom! Not equality!"

Ilia finally landed a stroke, taking advantage of Blake's outburst to land a strike on the black-haired teen's left arm, her Aura flickering a deep purple as it absorbed the damage. "What makes you think I don't want revenge! You know what the Humans did to me, to my family!"

Blake flipped backwards, out of reach. "Ilia…"

Ilia didn't advance to close the distance. "No, Blake! You betrayed the Faunus, but you betrayed me, too! You should have talked to me, at least warned me! Who do you think the first person Adam went to was when you disappeared!?"

Blake paled. "I-I didn't think-"

Ilia shook her head. "Of course you didn't, Blake. You're selfish. You ran without even leaving a message, and so many others had to pay for it. You're still running, aren't you? But this time you had to bring a human here!"

Ilia began her assault once more, each strike of her whip enunciating her words. "You just had to come back, didn't you! I'd almost managed to get over you and boom! You're right back in my life!"

Blake dodged the attacks, deflecting the final one with the sheath of Gambol Shroud. "Ilia, I never meant to get you hurt!"

The glare that Ilia levelled at Blake made the cat faunus wince. "You should have thought of that so, so many times over the years. You have no idea how many times you hurt me, without even knowing it."

"Then let me make up for it! Help me restore the White Fang to what it once was, what it's meant to be!"

Ilia paused for all of a single moment, considering the offer. "If you believe you can convince Sienna where your parents couldn't, you're even more stupid than I thought. You can't change the White Fang, Blake. We're criminals. Terrorists. That's what we've been called, and you can't just wipe away the deeds we've done."

"You don't know that!" Blake was practically shouting.

"You really have lied to yourself for so long you've forgotten the truth, haven't you? I'm guilty of so many things, but so are you. You and I are no better than Adam, or anyone else. Or are you saying you forgot about those Atlesian soldiers three years ago?"

It took all of her strength to remain standing. "We had no choice."

Ilia lowered her weapon. "Sure. That's what we all tell ourselves. But you left. You could have left earlier, before that. That was a choice. You could always have refused."

"Adam would have-"

Ilia interrupted her. "Adam would have done exactly what Adam is doing now. He hasn't changed, Blake, I haven't changed. You did."

"I'm trying to make amends for what I did."

"By running from your problems? By hiding yourself away and cowering behind the safety of a little bow?"

Blake's eyes locked with Ilia's. "How did you know about that?"

"Adam was very kind to keep me updated on you whenever we talked. Once he'd realized that I knew nothing about your escape, he figured I was his best ally for tracking you down. He sent me here, to watch for your return."

Blake's eyes widened. "You told him I came back?"

Ilia shook her head. "Not yet. I still might. I haven't decided if I want Adam's support, or to hold it over you."

"Blackmail?" Blake asked, incredulous.

"No. I'm not going to ask you to do anything other than leave. I don't want you in Menagerie. The White Fang doesn't want you in Menagerie, Blake, you or your human."

Blake's eyes widened. "This isn't about me, or you. This is the Albain brothers. They want Jaune gone."

Ilia furrowed her brow. "No, they wanted you both dead. I argued against killing you. I told them I could make you leave. The human is already dead."

"You know that for certain?" Blake asked, standing upright.

Ilia shrugged. "Yuma, Trifa and Keras were sent to kill him. He'll already be dead, or close."

Blake nearly let the smug look she wanted to wear so badly show. "You don't know anything about him, do you?"

"Why should I? He's a human, nothing more."

Blake shook her head. "Honestly, Ilia, between you and me? I don't think Jaune's human at all. Don't underestimate him."

"You have a real high opinion of him. That's rare."

"Well, I appreciate the compliment. I think. Blake, are you going to introduce me?"

* * *

He'd just landed on the balcony on the east side of the Belladonna Household, as quietly as he could, and the darkness wasn't so dark that he could make out the two figures.

Jaune wasn't sure what was going on, but from the looks of it, this woman was White Fang, and that Blake and the woman had a past. At least, that's what he'd determined from what he'd heard.

"Jaune, Ilia. Ilia, Jaune. There you go, you're all caught up."

And in typical Blake fashion, she'd kept her word count to a minimum, whilst managing to keep her dry wit intact.

"Wow, that felt like such a warm introduction," Jaune remarked. "You always have such a way with words."

"The more things change the more they stay the same, I guess. I'm surprised you aren't dead, human. Did you sneak away from Yuma, Trifa and Keras?"

Jaune shrugged. "If by sneak away you mean knock them all unconscious, then yeah."

Ilia quirked an eyebrow. "Huh. Color me surprised."

Blake let out a sigh.

Jaune rested one hand on the sheathed handle of Crocea Mors. "So, is this conversation time, or fighting time? Or are we doing a mix of both, with an added amount of sexual tension, because I'd rather not get involved in that if that's the case."

Ilia's entire body went pink, which caused Jaune no end of surprise. "Huh."

Blake let out another sigh, before turning to Ilia. "Ilia, please. Just stand down, and let's talk this out. I don't want to fight you, but I don't think Jaune has the same issues."

"Ouroboros choked out Yuma. Thought I'd just throw that out, I kind of felt like bragging for his sake. You know, considering he's a snake and he can't brag on his own, with the whole lacking the ability to speak thing."

Both Blake and Ilia looked at Jaune. Jaune shrugged. "He's here, if you feel like saying hello."

Ouroboros's head peeked out from Jaune's coat, forked tongue tasting the air.

Ilia quirked an eyebrow even higher. "I've met a lot of humans. You're definitely one of the weirdest."

Jaune shrugged. "I get that a lot."

They fell into a moment of silence, before Ilia put her weapon away. "I'll hear what you have to say. I'm giving you one chance to convince me of whatever it is you're trying to convince me of, but if you can't, I'm killing him and forcing you out of Menagerie."

Jaune tilted his head. "Not to accidentally cause another fight, but I don't think it'll be that easy to kill me."

"Jaune?" Blake asked.

"Yeah?" Jaune replied.

"Shut up."

Jaune nodded. "I can do that, yeah."

He took a seat on the balcony railing, near effortlessly keeping his balance upon it.

"Ilia, the White Fang were a part of the attack on Beacon."

If Blake was expecting Ilia to be horrified by that news, she was sorely mistaken.

"Adam said as much. Said he was leading an attack against the humans that protect other humans, and those that betrayed their own kind to do the same."

Blake and Jaune shared a look.

"Ilia, Adam was working for a human. A group of them, who needed the White Fang as disposable soldiers. They dropped Grimm into the school, and into Vale itself. They took down Amity Colosseum!"

That had the intended reaction. "What? The Grimm thing and the colosseum thing I knew, but Adam, working for humans?"

Jaune nodded. "As far as we know, Cinder Fall hired and supplied Adam. Roman Torchwick, a notorious human criminal, was leading groups of the White Fang on raids. They went from stealing dust to outright attempting to cause breaches in Vale's defenses. They sacrificed an entire train-full of White Fang on an attack they knew would fail, just so they couldn't be interrogated."

Jaune closed his eyes for a moment, pushing the memories back. "I barely managed to stop the breach."

"Banesaw died, killed on their orders by Roman's assassin," Blake continued. "He was a moment away from revealing everything to Jaune."

"You have to be kidding me," Ilia said. "This is bullshit. We both know Adam, he'd never give in to a human."

"Cinder's no normal human. There's a reason why her attack succeeded. She nearly killed some of the best fighters in Vale without so much as a hit. I couldn't even touch her if I tried, but I was pretty badly beaten up already. The White Fang needs to make better bombs, by the way."

Ilia almost commented on that, but Blake grabbed her attention once more. "Ilia, you know it's true."

"What did she look like?" Ilia asked, and Blake directed her to Jaune.

"Medium-length black hair, piercing amber eyes, red dress. Evil Blake without the ears, basically."

Blake glared.

"What? I said evil!"

Ilia ignored the diatribe. "I've seen her. The human's not wrong, she does look a bit like you. If she was faunus, I might've honestly mistaken her for you at a distance. Knowing now that she wasn't..."

"Ilia..."

Ilia shook her head. "She was at the camp when you were, Blake. How did you miss her?"

Blake's eyes widened. "That's what Adam was meeting about… The one he told me not to worry about. We had the train mission the next morning."

"When you abandoned us," Ilia muttered.

"And that was the day I saved your life!" Jaune said nonchalantly. "I knew I'd figure out the exact timeline on that eventually."

Blake rounded on Jaune. "I've said it so many times, you distracted me! If you hadn't been there, those Ursa wouldn't have been a problem!"

Jaune nodded slowly, with the most condescending look he could muster.

Blake pushed him off the balcony.

Ilia let out a surprised laugh, though she quickly smothered it. "So Adam betrayed the White Fang, not you. Well, you did too, but it's a lesser crime to run than it is to manipulate an entire cell into following the orders of a human. I guess you're the lesser of two evils."

Blake sighed. "I didn't want to run, Ilia, but I couldn't stay. Maybe if Adam wasn't so… Adam, I'd have said that I felt disillusioned with the way the White Fang was progressing, but we both know what he'd do to keep me."

The black-haired girl repressed a shiver. "I can't go back to that. I won't."

Ilia looked away. "I… I know. I just wish it could have gone differently." Her eyes snapped back up to Blake. "I still haven't forgiven you. But if Adam's betrayed the White Fang, Sienna needs to know. And I can't keep working for him, knowing that. We need to take this to the Albain brothers. They'll pass the message onto Sienna."

Jaune clambered back onto the balcony. "We've been working on that. Blake's father was passing the message onto Sienna, but I don't know how successful that was. Blake, where are your parents?"

Ilia answered. "We chose this night because both the Chieftain and Lady Kali would be out having dinner with the Albain's."

"The Albain's being the ones who tried to have me and Blake killed?" Jaune asked.

Ilia immediately raised both hands. "They're safe. I was supposed to chase Blake off the island, I said as much, and your death was supposed to be blamed as you attacking the White Fang out of anger for being shot."

"So that was deliberate!" Jaune exclaimed loudly.

Ilia nodded. "Human or not, you took that shot pretty well. Must be the thick skull."

There was a moment of silence. "So, what now? I definitely could sleep, I've been working all afternoon, and I'm exhausted. Or, well, I will be, once the adrenaline wears off."

"Yuma sent me a message about that. What were you even doing?" Ilia asked.

Jaune waved here question off. "No matter how long you've known Blake, or how much she trusts you now, I don't know you. And I don't really trust you, especially not with some of the things about me. Maybe you'll find out one day. Maybe not. Right now, though, the details aren't important. I was just working away, forging metal as a favor."

He knew it wasn't a very good lie, but it seemed that the words before it had landed where he'd needed them to.

"For the record, human, I trust you even less. You put three of the White Fang's best into the dirt without taking a hit, but I've never heard of you. You're obviously hiding something pretty serious. Serious means dangerous, which means you're putting Blake in danger. I don't like that."

"Bit late to be playing the concerned friend card," Jaune remarked.

"Knock it off, both of you. Ilia, you'd better report in, say that you've delivered your message. They won't care if you haven't succeeded, they'll be too busy with Jaune to worry about you or me. We need to keep up your facade."

Blake's words struck a chord. "Yeah, I'll do that. It might mean they'll send me after him, though."

Jaune smiled. "We'll just have to put on a good show, then, won't we."

Ilia's fingers tapped a rhythm against her weapon. "I'm a method-actor, human. It only seems real if it is real."

She completed her statement by turning nearly completely black, and disappearing into the night.

Blake slumped over, leaning against the railing.

"You okay?" Jaune asked, concern filling his voice.

Blake nodded soundlessly. "I just… I don't know what I was expecting. Ilia was my closest friend for years, and seeing her again…"

Jaune accepted the answer, knowing better than to push. "If it means anything, I think she really wanted to believe you from the start. She doesn't like me very much though."

"I don't like you very much most of the time."

Jaune could tell the insult had less than no bite. Dry sarcasm as a defense mechanism was something he was very familiar with. "Get some sleep. You look like you've been through hell."

Blake took the advice as instructions, disappearing inside the house. Jaune would do something similar soon, he'd retire to his own bed, and sleep.

First, though, he was going to keep watching the skyline.

The stars were very, very pretty tonight, and he wanted to enjoy them for as long as he could.

This might be the final night for a while he'd be able to relax.

* * *

Ammo was running low, but morale was running even lower.

This was the third village they'd come across like this, just a smoking wreck of broken buildings and dead villagers.

No survivors. There were never survivors.

"Shit," He remarked under his breath, slicking his hair back. There was nothing more to say.

The others were less vocal, but he could tell it was hitting them hard.

There were reasons he drank. This was one of them. Being too late.

"We need to keep moving. There's nothing we can do here."

They set out, departing the ruins of the village. He was worried. Destroyed villages this close to Mistral?

That sort of thing never bode well, and if there was one thing he was intimately familiar with, it was ill omens.

"Shit."

It was all he could say.

* * *

 **Hey, other perspectives! Figured it was about time, if all the reviews mentioning it hadn't clued me in already :P. I'll dive straight into reviews, and then I'll probably get started on the next chapter. Here's hoping I can properly get back to doing the weekly chapter thing, not to jinx it.**

 **ZHsteven: Non-combat skills have always had my interest in so many things, but they can be notoriously difficult to write. Especially considering this chapter. You don't want to read about Jaune placing a piece of ore in a forge and then taking out an ingot three hundred times in a row, and I don't want to write that. However, with the Crafting and now the Gathering skills, hopefully I can start going more and more indepth into all the things they can be used for.**

 **eprince200: I get what you're saying, and I appreciate the intent, but for the sake of the coherency of the story, I don't think I'll add abusable or comedic parts to the System. Don't get me wrong, when done right they can be entertaining as hell, but sometimes it just falls flat, and breaks a lot of things. Especially infinite loot and item duplication. As fun as it sounds, it does ruin the enjoyment of many parts of things, which is what limitation adds. It's why I play a lot of games over again with restrictions, or challenges. It's always more fun to have to work for success.**

 **Nagisa Tr: Psst. There's been a skill almost exactly like that since chapter 12, Jaune just hasn't unlocked it. IIRC it's an achievement reward.**

 **jedimasterb10: Turns out Jaune just weaponizes his intentional amputation by building weapons out of his severed limbs. Brings a whole new meaning to being armed, I guess.**

 **IHateGenericCereal: I actually had a Grimminomicon tab in the spreadsheet, but it just acted as a conglomerate list of all the Grimm I'd added to Systema. I converted it when I realized that the name would actually make a good item, and that I kind of wanted all the custom descriptions I'd written to actually see the light of day. The rewards are more than likely just going to be more dungeon chests, they're pretty much my go-to, but I may change that in the future.**

 **Anonymous4.O: Weird? Nah. Smarter than me? Probably. That would've been pretty funny, not gonna lie. Though I can safely say that Jaune would not want to touch it. Maybe he could attach it back somehow and have three arms. Now that's weird.**

 **stateoffear: As an avid player of both OSRS and RS3, I can safely say that yes, I'm going to go full Runescape on you. It's inevitable. Join us. Joooooin ussss!**

 **armentho: Ooh, places of interest is a good call. Fallout-style, maybe, where you get XP for discovering a location could work quite well. It means I can make a bunch of achievements for discovering PoI's, so that's gonna go in the spreadsheet.**

 **The Wizardrous Magicman: Don't worry! I'm still working on the abilities the Geist summon has, but they may play a part in the events of the future!**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: Out of all that, the biggest thing that sticks out is Blake getting some kind of Artifact. I've been working away on them over the past two weeks, in whatever off-time I've managed to scrounge up, and I'm still a little undecided. I think I've narrowed it down, and you'll probably see it soon. Hopefully it's as good as I think it'll be. Also the idea of fish just being gigantic is great, and I'm gonna workshop that a little.**

 **Truck-Sama: Your reviews have been more than entertaining to read, :D. It's always a treat to see how new people react, especially when they enjoy it.**

 **paradox0.5white: That final episode of Volume 7 was right up my alley, lmao. Safe to say I called it 7 years in advance :P. Honestly, if Jaune can kill it, I'm more than happy to add it as a summon.**

 **gandalf da black: To be completely fair, that name was what I named the spreadsheet tab, and it just kind of stuck. It wasn't originally intended to be an item, but when I made it an item, I figured it'd be best just to leave it. Besides, it does fit quite well. If Grimm were called 'Beasts' or something in canon and I used 'Beastinomicon' it wouldn't be anywhere near as good. Maybe I could've come up with a different, more original name, but in the end, it's not the most important thing in the story.**

 **freaky gusmacker: It's been a while since I've read that, but I was up to date when I stopped, which was about halfway through 2019. I figured since we'd already had the Arachnae there wasn't much point in going that direction, and seeing as it's a variant of the Geist, it did have to be a little similar.**

 **Argus456: I still haven't read 'The Games We Play'. I've been meaning to, I really have, I just haven't had the time. So, not a reference, or at least, not an intentional one. As for parties, well, I've got a few ideas that play on similar concepts, but there are no classic RPG parties in Systema, and unlike dungeons, I'm not likely to change that anytime soon. The only thing I can think of that might be considered a 'party' is the canon-esq Aura meters for the team, implemented into the System. That's pretty much the only thing I'd let slip through.**

 **razmire: The name is a reference, but that's about the only similarity.**

 **KorevainsoLightshire: Formal Delinquent Wannabe? I don't really know what that means. I just gave him a button-up shirt and a coat? Does looking a bit better dressed than a hoodie make him a delinquent?**

 **Kyuubi-Titan: Hey, if you ever have any ideas, you can always PM me. I'm pretty active on checking them, this past week or two not-withstanding. And hey, if you release your story, hit me up and send me a link, I love to read other people's stuff. Same goes for everyone else, actually.**

 **handwran: Just as an important aside, not that I don't enjoy your reviews, I do, I just want to make clear that I will not be releasing chapters ahead for any patrons. I give out access to completely original content that I've created, such as the System's spreadsheet, and soon I'll be releasing the code for the drop tables, but that's it. Not to say I definitely don't appreciate my patrons, I love you guys so much!**

 **That will have to do it for reviews this week (2 weeks, I know, I'm bad at schedules). Thanks everyone for leaving a review, and if I didn't get to it, know I definitely read it! Multiple times. Your reviews give me life.**

 **I have a Pa Treon if you ever feel like tossing me some change, I'd really appreciate it! It has the full spreadsheet, if you're ever curious!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


	72. Dungeon Speedrun

**Hey. Been a bit. My bad, boys and girls, life's been one hell of a ride for the past few weeks. Getting an actual chance to write has been a little... tough. So, in order to make up for my disappearance, here's the actual longest chapter in Systema's history. Enjoy?**

 **Thanks to my patrons for this month; Robert Waldron, Justas Kondrusevicius, Handwran and Maxstroid! Seriously, you guys are great, thanks for sticking around!**

* * *

Sweat dripped down his brow, the droplet of offending liquid landing center on the superheated bar of metal he was working on, sizzling into steam and nothingness in but a moment, only for another to share its fate a moment later.

The hammer swung downwards with enough force to rattle the surroundings, the loud clang of metal against metal echoing throughout the workshop's interior as flakes of metal scale fell to the floor amongst the shower of sparks, the action being repeated ad nauseum, until the hammerer was finished with the shaping of the piece.

The final bar shaped into an ingot, Jaune placed it away in his inventory, the metal joining the rest of the stack in his stock of supplies. What he was going to use any of them for right now he wasn't sure, but that was, hopefully, not long to last.

"You finally finished?"

The voice wasn't his own, instead Blake, who had been watching from the sidelines.

Jaune nodded, the back of his hand wiping the sweat from his brow. "That was the last one. Hit Level 27 _Crafting_ , though, which is nice."

"Anything interesting?"

Jaune checked through his notification menu. "Quite a few new recipes at Level 25, but since then nothing. Biggest thing would be the little note that I now create potions at Regular quality, instead of Minor, which is nice. Don't really know what that means, but any improvement is good."

Blake hummed an acknowledgement, proving just how little she really cared about the intricate details of the less-combat-oriented parts of his semblance, which he could understand completely. She had been waiting for him to finish for the good part of an hour, since she'd arrived.

"We should get moving, though. I know we agreed we should go see how much further we can get into the Hallowed Quay, but are you sure your up for some spelunking?"

"If by 'spelunking' you mean swimming in potentially Grimm-infested water deep underneath a cavern with no way to breath underwater, then sure. I guess I have no choice."

Ah. Right. The whole water-breathing thing. "Scuba-gear?"

Blake quirked an eyebrow at him. "Not exactly a market for that sort of thing around here. Or a willingness to actually put it on."

Jaune navigated to his recipe menu with practised ease. "I could've sworn I saw something here for a water-breathing potion of some sort. Hold on a sec."

Blake did so, waiting for Jaune to speak once more, eyes already straying back down to her book. It was better than standing there awkwardly waiting for Jaune's eyes to refocus anywhere other than the blank, empty air in front of him.

He spoke up once more. "A-hah! One of my new potions, the Aqualung Decoction! One Alchemic Reagent, one Inert Dust and a sprinkle of Water Dust Powder. Shouldn't be too difficult, I've got almost all the components right here. Just gotta grind down the Dust."

He turned around, quickly pacing over to the nearby worktable, reaching into his inventory all the while. "One Grade II Water Dust Crystal plus grinder equals…"

His narration proved true as he watched the small tub at the bottom of the specially-designed grinder fill with the crystalline blue powder, and he scooped it up, placing it into a slot in his inventory.

Two sets of Water Dust Powder, according to his inventory, which was nice. One Grade II equaled two Dust Powder, or so it seemed.

He quickly finished the rest of the procedure, and turned around. "Tadah!"

In the palm of his hand was a small crystalline vial, filled with a glimmering blueish-green liquid, gently swaying from side to side within its container.

Blake, as was expected, quirked her eyebrow. "You expect me to drink that?"

Jaune shrugged. "It's either drink it or drink a hell of a lot of sea water. Your call."

She gingerly took the vial, eyeing it cautiously. "Are you sure this will work? I'd rather not find out it actually doesn't work the hard way."

Another shrug. "One way to find out. I'll make another one, just in case."

As he set about doing exactly that, he heard Blake's scroll buzz. "I thought communication was down?"

Blake shook her head, but elaborated nonetheless. "Local communication is fine, at least within the bounds of Kuo Kuana. Trying to get a signal out across the ocean is a lot harder, especially with Vale's tower being in the situation it was when I left."

That still left the question of the message's contents, and as to who the sender was. So, Jaune asked. "Who's messaging you?"

"Ilia. She's keeping me updated on the whole White Fang front. Apparently you caused a bit of a stir with what you did to their strike team."

Jaune placed the second potion in his inventory carefully. "I like to think of it as what they did to themselves."

"That's not what she's just sent me, though."

Jaune perked his head up, eyebrow raised. "Don't leave me on a cliffhanger here, Blake, you know I hate the suspense."

Blake rolled her eyes. "She's been ordered to keep a close eye on us, and report back our movements. She's apparently supposed to pretend she's swapped sides and allied herself with us, to get on our good side."

Jaune whistled. "That's either stupidly good luck, a massive coincidence, or she's playing the ballsiest game of lies I've ever heard."

"Ballsiest?" Blake asked, partially in disgust.

Jaune waved her concern aside. "Figure of speech. Valean thing."

He ushered the black-haired girl out of the workshop, quickly tossing a few thousand Lien to the shopkeeper who'd let him borrow it, before once again returning to the street. "So, how good a swimmer is Ilia?"

* * *

"You want me to what?"

Ilia seemed… frustrated. That was what Jaune was going to say. Frustrated was a good word for it.

"You're supposed to ingratiate yourself with us, right? And by us they mean use Blake to get to me, and then eventually kill me when my back is turned, unless I'm mistaken. So, I want you to come help Blake and I with clearing a place of Grimm!"

He said it with such enthusiasm that there was no way Ilia could possibly refuse! It was a brilliant move on his part, at least, in his opinion.

"Blake, please tell me he's kidding."

Okay, maybe not an instant sell, but what was life without a little challenge?

"He's not kidding, unfortunately. He's also not kidding about the whole place being submerged."

Jaune shook his head, quickly correcting his teammate. "Not the whole place. Just the main conduit. Most of the places inside have breathable air."

"Okay, for one second, let me just lay out a hypothetical. My weapon uses Lightning Dust to power it. What happens if you put electricity in salt water?" Ilia said, gesturing to the weapon on her side. "You really think that's a good idea?"

Jaune shook his head yet again. "Like I said, the main conduit is the only part with water, aside from a few special occasions. You won't have to use your weapon, so just keep it deactivated, and we'll all be fine. Easy peasy."

Ilia looked at Jaune for one long, extended moment, before turning to Blake. "And you said he's your 'leader'?"

Blake quickly hid a smirk. "For better or worse. Usually worse."

With a sigh, Jaune slumped. "Yet again you pass out a backhanded compliment like they're going out of style. Thanks, Blake, your faith in my leadership won't go unrewarded."

Ilia regained control of the rapidly-spiralling conversation. "Okay, fine. I'm in, not that I really have a choice. So, where to?"

"Hallowed Quay. Ever been there before?" Jaune asked the faunus as he paced backwards along the street, facing the other two.

"I've heard of it. Never been there before, but it's a place Brothers Corsac and Fennec bring up often enough. Apparently a human and a White Fang traitor have been 'interfering' with something there."

That was enough information to spark significant interest in both Blake and Jaune.

"The White Fang knew what was happening in Hallowed Quay?" Blake asked, and Ilia nodded.

"I only managed to gather bits and pieces, but Corsac went there relatively recently, when the settlement was still bustling. He said it was for a recruiting trip, but he came back empty-handed, but he told Fennec that it had been a success. I just thought the new recruits were staying there. Are you saying something else happened?" Ilia seemed genuinely concerned, something Jaune could respect.

"The entire settlement up and vanished, aside from a rather strange run-in with what we originally thought was a child."

Ilia stalled, unmoving. "What you 'thought' was a child?!"

Blake nodded. "Now we think it's some kind of illusion, or hallucination, or something like that. We're still a little unsure on all the details."

"What happened to the child?" Ilia asked, resuming her pace, though her expression remained concerned.

"They lead us towards a massive outcropping on the coast, and then something spooked them, and they dove under the water with a hell of a lot of speed. They didn't reappear, either. No trace. It was really weird."

Jaune's explanation seemed to leave something to be desired, in Ilia's opinion. "A giant outcropping. Right."

Jaune continued. "Blake and I ventured inside, but the first floor was just full of Arachnae and little Deathstalkers. We cleared them out, but the only way from there was to dive into the water, so I went down myself. I cleared out a sizable amount, but I think I'm only a quarter of the way through. There's an obstacle in the way lower down that I can't pass, but I think Blake can."

Ilia shook her head, as if to clear her thoughts. "I'll admit, I'm a bit lost."

Blake placed a comforting hand on Ilia's shoulder. "I'll explain more soon. Jaune's still a little… hesitant about trusting you with the full details, but we'll cover everything we can once we're clear of Kuo Kuana."

Ilia accepted that, but she still had a question on her lips, one she very quickly made vocal. "So, we're just walking all the way to Hallowed Quay?"

Perfect timing for the question, too, as they'd just reached the furthest border of the main settlement of Menagerie.

"See for yourself," Jaune remarked, stretching one hand out.

Shirdal appeared from a cloud of wafting smoke, stepping forward and bowing his head, allowing Jaune's hand to ruffle the golden feathers on his neck. The audible gasp from Ilia was as satisfying as he'd expected it to be, and he turned to face his new ally. "Meet Shirdal."

Ilia's mouth opened to speak, only to close once more, and then again it opened, only this time she actually managed to get words out. "That's a Grimm."

Jaune shook his head. "No, it's not. Well, technically. He was once a Grimm that I killed and reformed the soul of. The coloration and the intelligence are pretty good indicators of that. He's friendly, see?"

Shirdal took a step forward, head brushing past Blake's hand and centering itself in front of Ilia, who seemed increasingly nervous, becoming more so the closer Shirdal got.

She stretched her hand out, and Shirdal pushed his head into it, letting her fingers run over the feathered crest at the top of his head. "This is weird."

Jaune gestured to Blake quickly, and she scrambled up into the saddle, leaning out to snag Ilia's hand and pull her up behind her.

"Take Shirdal and go ahead, I'll be right behind you. I'll have Alcmena carry me," Jaune said, motioning to the two.

"Wait, wha-" Ilia managed to get out before Shirdal took off with a powerful flap of his wings, and Jaune nearly let out a laugh as she clutched herself around Blake in sudden surprise.

Once they'd cleared the area, Jaune allowed Alcmena to be summoned, bronze feathers shining in the sunlight. "Hey, girl, ready to go?"

Alcmena stretched her wings, quietly chirping, before she took off, talons snagging Jaune by the shoulders and lifting him off the ground as well, quickly catching up with Shirdal and his riders. One of which was clinging very, very tightly to the other.

The flight wasn't too long, about the same amount of time as it had been the last time, which didn't exactly come as a surprise to Jaune, and landing on the outcropping was virtually no different either, aside from the small encampment that had been set up not too far from the entrance to the first floor.

There was some commotion coming from the tents as guardsmen scrambled for their weapons, only to be rapidly dissuaded by the one who appeared to be in charge as she warily approached Jaune and Alcmena, Shirdal and his two riders being deposited just a bit behind him.

"You're the captain of this garrison, right?" Jaune asked, putting on his best 'authority' voice, which wasn't all too different from his usual voice. Acting wasn't his strong suit.

The woman nodded, quickly adjusting her hood so that it wasn't pinching her extraneous ears. "I am. You would be Jaune Arc, correct? We've been asked to keep an eye out for you."

Jaune quickly glanced over in Blake's direction, a moment of concern flickering over his face. "Who asked you to do that?"

"Chieftain Belladonna. He wanted to know about all movements of anyone nearby, but especially you. For the safety of his daughter and her friend. Er, friends, my apologies."

Ilia shrugged, not caring much about being ignored. Blake took charge of the conversation instead, stepping forward. "Has anyone else come by as of recently?"

The woman took a moment, turning to one of her men and gesturing rapidly. There was a lull in the conversation as the guard that had been addressed quickly returned into one of the tents, emerging with a small clipboard, and the captain took it from his hands, a quickly nodded thank-you giving the guardsman a chance to back away from the giant bird that stood behind Jaune.

The captain looked down at the clipboard briefly. "We've had a few passers-by, mostly just travellers from other settlements trying to trade with Hallowed Quay. The only people that have come by this garrison have been a couple of brothers and sisters of the White Fang, inquiring as to why we were here. Nothing out of the ordinary."

Both Jaune and Blake glanced at Ilia, but that would have to wait. "Thank you for your help, captain. We're going inside, I won't leave my summons here for you."

There was a moment where the captain's professional facade dropped and on her face was pure, undiluted relief, but it was quickly covered back up. "Understood. Stay safe, Hunters."

Jaune hoped he could hold to that advice, but knowing his luck…

Well, he couldn't expect it to go smoothly. Nothing else ever had.

* * *

Ilia took one look at the whole in the ground, the murky water swirling around inside it, before she looked back up at Blake and Jaune. "We're supposed to go down there?"

Jaune nodded, as Blake sighed. As good a sign as he was ever going to get that she was ready, he guessed.

"Alright, here, one Aqualung Decoction for you, Blake, and here, one for you Ilia," Jaune said, handing each of them a vial of the blueish green potion. "That's half an hour of waterbreathing, so use it just before you jump in. Also, here."

He handed them a single Hearthstone each. "Push your Aura into it, and it'll bring you straight back here. Emergencies only, though, they're not cheap." His instructions were directed at Ilia, but he knew Blake might benefit from a refresher.

He shrugged off his coat and took off his shirt, stowing the both in his inventory. "I'll go first, wait a few moments, and then follow. It's a bit of a tight squeeze for more than one person at a time."

And with that, Jaune jumped into the hole in the floor, a splash of water the only thing he left behind, aside from the two girls.

Blake and Ilia shared a glance.

"Alright Blake, you first," Ilia said.

"After you," Blake said, at the exact same time.

There was another moment of silence, before Ilia immediately went on the offensive. "Nope. You're going first. I went first last time."

"Last time?" Blake asked, before the memory struck her. "Wait, you don't mean the Atlas facility in Frostwreath, do you? You wanted to go first!"

"I think that's a lie," Ilia replied, pointedly avoiding Blake's gaze.

"Look, you're going first, because I still don't trust you completely." Blake nearly regretted saying it from the look on Ilia's face, but she stuck with her point. "I want to, Ilia, desperately. But what I've seen, what's happened ever since I left… I'm a little short on blind faith. So, you go first, and I'll follow behind you."

Blake could tell Ilia was wrestling with something, but she accepted it, not that she had much other choice. "And you're absolutely sure this isn't poison?"

Blake went to answer, but decided to instead look at her own Aqualung Decoction. "Gods I hope not."

It didn't exactly strike confidence into Ilia, but she downed the contents of the vial all the same, letting it slip out of her hands once she'd finished it, a shudder running down her spine.

"Blergh, it tastes like sea water!" She exclaimed, but Blake was already gesturing for the chameleon faunus to dive in, so she did, plunging into the cold water.

Blake waited a moment, working up the courage to follow, before she too downed her awful-tasting potion and dove in after her, the water feeling terrible against her skin, instantly soaking her outfit and weighing her down.

Damn, if only she'd actually brought something better to wear. Not that she really had anything better to wear. At least Ilia's combat outfit was designed to be water-proof.

Blake swam deeper, through the twisting and turning tunnel, but it wasn't long until she felt the intrinsic life-required need to take a breath.

She was putting a hell of a lot of faith in Jaune.

She allowed herself to inhale.

And instead of water, she inhaled air.

There was a single moment of ludicrous panic. Where had the water gone? Where had the air come from?

Blake didn't know, and Blake didn't like not knowing things about her situation.

Gods, was this what Jaune felt like every single day? Confused, worried, but hopeful that it wouldn't all come crashing down on top of him?

There was a little more swimming, which Blake was willing to do, she'd made a promise to follow right behind Ilia, even if she hadn't actually seen her old friend yet, but that was soon to change, as the tunnel began widening, further and further, and she was beginning to make out a source of light.

She rounded a bend and emerged into a gigantic hollow column, filled completely with the same semi-murky water that she'd been swimming through already. The lightsource glowed dimly, and she swam towards it, noticing the two silhouettes in front of it.

Jaune waved hello, before motioning towards his mouth. Blake understood the message without the words, because the message was saying that they couldn't really speak. That made sense, they were underwater.

Jaune's second gesture was also simple to understand, a quick 'follow me' gesture being one they'd been taught to follow in Beacon. It was also the one the White Fang used, conveniently, so at the very least Ilia wasn't left out.

Jaune began swimming downwards, powerful strokes pulling him deeper and deeper, Ilia between him and Blake, who followed through the rear, for a change glad for the weight her outfit was providing, helping to drag her down without so much effort. A help rather than a hindrance, for a change.

Jaune led the two of them down until they reached a small outcropping with what looked to be a large bubble surrounding it, and both Blake and Ilia watched in mild shock and awe as he simply passed right through it, his body becoming difficult to see, distorted by the shimmer of the bubble.

Ilia, as she'd been instructed back on the surface, followed suit, and then finally Blake, dropping from water into actual air, a gasp escaping her mouth before she could stop it.

"There we go, any trouble?" Jaune asked, and two soaking wet glares met him.

He took a step backwards, out of striking range. "I know, it's not a pleasant swim. At least we got to the room?"

That was the moment that the two decided to actually take stock of their surroundings.

And by surroundings, it was more like two small rooms separated by a wall, with a door inset into it.

"What floor is this?" Blake asked, taking a step towards the door, trying the handle, to no avail.

Jaune quickly checked one of his menus, much to Ilia's confusion. "Six. Dunno how many there are in total, though. I'm guessing around ten, but I'm probably wrong."

Blake hummed in 'I'm-listening-but-not-responding-verbally', which Jaune understood quite well, as she knelt down and began fiddling with the lock.

"Okay, what the hell are you two talking about. You said you'd tell me, and the human gave me a potion that literally made me able to breathe underwater, so unless Vale suddenly became Remnant's largest pharmaceutical powerhouse, something fishy is going on."

Blake paused her work on the lock. "Might as well come clean, she's come this far. Can't really play this off."

Jaune nodded, but it was obvious he was deep in thought. "How do I even begin…"

Ilia leaned against the wall, impatience written into every part of her face. "The beginning sounds like a good place to start."

"You asked for it. When I was born, my parents named me Jaune, after my-"

Blake laughed, a small chuckle under her breath, nearly costing her the pin she'd pushed back. "Jaune, seriously, skip to the important part."

Jaune smirked, but continued. "A couple weeks before the beginning of the first semester of Beacon, I woke up with my semblance. I didn't have Aura, my new semblance had relocked it, but I did have a number of other things. Namely, it effectively converted me into a character from a video game."

Ilia had a look of pure disbelief on her face.

"Yeah, I know, it's a bit much to believe. Just know that for now, this place is a dungeon just like a dungeon from an RPG, and there's probably going to be a powerful boss at the end of it."

"A video game," Ilia stated, still in disbelief.

"Yep," Jaune answered succinctly.

"Like 'Trials of the Hunter'?" Ilia asked, frowning. "I used to play that when I was a kid."

Jaune's eyes lit up like a kid in a candy-store. "Yeah, like that! I mean, partially. 'Trials of the Hunter' was pretty much more of an action RPG, and it didn't have crafting mechanics or anything, but that's a good start!"

Ilia stared at him. "So what, you've got stats?"

Jaune nodded excitedly. "Yep! Strength, Endurance, Agility, Intelligence, Wisdom, Charisma and Luck."

Blake stood up, the door swinging open with a click. "Well, as great as it is that the two of you are getting along, I'm done here."

Ilia was immediately on the defensive. "I'm not getting along with the human! I'm just trying to understand his insanity!"

Jaune ignored the insult, stepping forward and passing through the door. "Well, there's nothing too interesting back here. Just a lever."

Blake raised an eyebrow. "Since when is a single lever not interesting? It's a step down from a bright red button labeled 'do not push' for you."

"How did you- No, not important. I'm gonna pull the lever." Jaune did exactly as he said, placing one hand on the metal bar and pulling it downwards.

The chamber was filled with a loud grinding sound that stopped just as abruptly as it started.

The three remained silent for a long moment, before Jaune spoke up once more. "That was a bit anticlimactic. At least there's a chest for clearing the floor."

Ilia looked where Jaune was pointing, before doing a double-take. "Where the hell did that come from!?"

Jaune waved his fingers mockingly. "Magic~!"

Ilia resisted hitting Jaune as he knelt down in front of the chest, searching through his inventory. "Man, I hope I have a Citrine Key in here, otherwise I'll have to come back for the chest…"

He didn't. That was a shame. Jaune sighed, before he was struck with a bright idea. "I wonder…"

He put one hand on one end of the chest, and the other hand on the other end, and heaved, lifting the chest from the floor.

It took a bit of trial and error just trying to actually find where his inventory was floating relative to his position, seeing as he had a chest in front of his face, but he managed to find it, and was pleasantly surprised when the chest slotted into an open inventory slot without so much as a word from his inventory.

Not something that could be said about Ilia. "What."

Jaune figured it would just be best to let Ilia acclimatize to her situation at her own pace, and promptly ignored her outburst of shock, instead favoring to simply step back out into the flooded column to check for any discrepancies.

There was a discrepancy. In fact, it was a large discrepancy, one that, now that Jaune was looking at it, was quite a sizeable discovery.

He re-entered the bubble to the sixth floor, or at least his face did, enough so that he could speak. "Last bit of swimming for a while, I think. Come on, follow me."

Even despite the fact that Blake had known she would have to go back into the water, she still sighed. She'd been desperately hoping that it wouldn't pan out that way, but to no avail.

The two of them joined Jaune in the water, once again forgetting that they didn't have to hold their breath, but it wouldn't matter too much.

Jaune swam downwards once again, but this time it was apparent that it was a significantly shorter distance, as the flooded column ended in what basically amounted to a U-bend, taking them down, around and then up, where they surfaced in a large chamber, a ring of stone surrounding the large pool of water they were currently treading in.

He swam to one edge, grabbing a hold and pulling himself out, before offering a hand each to Blake and Ilia, dragging them out of the water and onto the stone.

While they recovered, Blake struggling in her attempt to dry herself off, Jaune took in the surroundings in more detail.

He made it about half a second before he noticed something rather important.

There were around fifteen Alpha Beowolves charging at them, all at Level 66.

Jaune's eyes widened as he raised one hand, a yell emerging from his vocal cords as he opened fire, a _Mana Bullet_ speeding down-range, his first panic spell not being any of his more powerful ones.

He'd panicked, and used it over anything else, it'd been the first thing to pop into his head. He could only hope it would be enough to keep them back just long enough for Blake and Ilia to get their weapons ready.

The _Mana Bullet_ hit the lead Alpha square in the chest, but it barely fazed the Grimm, and it's sharpened claws were inches from Jaune now. These things were fast, faster than he'd expected.

He ducked backwards, thankful that Ilia and Blake had moved back, and quickly hit the closest with a _Mana Blast_ , just to get him a little bit of space to work with, reaching into his inventory and withdrawing Tranquility.

He wasn't about to let a few Beowolves stop him, and he almost immediately put that sentiment into action, ripping the lead Beowolf in half with a powerful blast of buckshot to the midsection.

He racked the shotgun once more, taking another shot before he had to throw up a _Mana Field_. These things were persistent, and strong, too. Not particularly tough, but when they all threw themselves at his _Mana Field_ and practically ignored Ilia and Blake, despite the constant gunfire and lightning that the two of them sent into the cluster, it was safe to say Jaune wasn't exactly, well, safe.

He could see his _Mana Field_ already cracking under the onslaught.

He quickly began prepping for the moment it would break, hitting the ground all around him with a _Mana Calamity_ , watching as the Mana took to the very air, sapping the Grimm of their HP, withering their very flesh.

"Keep back!" Jaune shouted. He wasn't sure how it would work with friendly fire, and he definitely didn't want to find out, especially not now. He'd play it safe until he had time to test it in a more comfortable, less hazardous environment.

The _Mana Field_ couldn't hold any longer, unfortunately. It shattered underneath the clawed onslaught, and Jaune had to quickly break free of the incoming attacks, _Phaseshift_ triggering as he pushed forwards, through the Beowolves. It was a quick movement, enough that _Phaseshift_ didn't drain too much of his large Mana pool, and he was on the other side of the cluster.

They were quick to turn around, the rear-guard suddenly becoming the fore-guard, but they weren't quick enough to do anything about the next step of Jaune's hastily constructed combat strategy.

Gravitus and Glacius made for one hell of a combo, that was for sure. With Gravitus' _Blackhole_ and Glacius' _Blizzard_ , the two elementals could pull anything within range into a damaging field of altered gravity, and then freeze them in place, making them unable to resist the crushing damage. It was honestly brutal to watch.

Jaune didn't even have to do anything as chunks of frozen Grimmflesh broke off the Beowolves and was nearly disintegrated under the pressure of the gravitational field. Instead, he simply took a step back, to prevent him from accidentally getting sucked in alongside the beasts.

Of course, this did mean that both Gravitus and Glacius would be without their powerful moves for the rest of the day, but he could accept that. It had saved not only his life, possibly, but also saved him a lot of crucial time and ammunition.

 **[Hallowed Bay: Floor 7 Cleared!]**

 **[A reward has appeared!]**

 **[You've gained 4,574,325 XP and 21,780 Lien! You've acquired 42 Inert Dust, 11 Alpha Beowolf Pelts, 6 Alpha Beowolf Claws, 3 Beowolf Skulls, 10 Alpha Beowolf Spines, 3 Rinade Herbs, 8 Eogenlit Herbs, 1 Grade IV Lightning Dust Crystal, 2 Crimson Keys, 1 Opal Key and 1 Cobalt Key!]**

 **[You have leveled up twice and gained +10 Stat Points!]**

Well, that was a lot of stuff. The notification nearly scrolled out of Jaune's periphery, and he had to condense it to read it properly. Not his biggest notification by far, but still enough to be worth making note of.

"You alright, Jaune?" Blake asked, sheathing Gambol Shroud as Ilia did the same with her weapon, looking a little more wary than before, her eyes not straying from the two crystalline golems that stood (or in Gravitus' case, floated) behind the blond teen.

Jaune nodded. "Yeah, I'm good. Didn't get hit, but it did put a bit of a strain on my Mana. I'll be topped up in a minute or so, don't worry."

He shrugged his shoulders, if only to release the tension he'd been feeling moments before, and scanned their surroundings once more, looking for what the notification had promised.

He noticed it in only a few moments, as Glacius stepped aside, allowing Jaune's vision to go past the towering arctic elemental, and towards where the Opal Chest sat, as locked as the rest of them when they appeared.

He paced towards it quickly, already pulling the key he'd just earned out of his inventory and slotting it into the lock with a satisfying single try, turning it to hear the even more satisfying click of the lock unlocking.

He could feel Ilia's gaze on him, and he accepted it as mere curiosity, already too distracted by even more potential loot to care about any other meaning.

His arm went to reach into the chest before he stopped, taking a step back and reaching into his inventory, withdrawing Crocea Mors and holding it in front of him.

This caught Blake's attention moreso than Ilia's, and her hand strayed back to Gambol Shroud. "Is it…?"

Jaune didn't know. He poked it with the tip of his blade warily.

The Opal Chest did nothing.

He poked it again.

Still, it did nothing.

Jaune kicked the chest, and then swore loudly, clutching at his booted foot. "Not my smartest move…"

The chest continued to do nothing in spite of the injury it had just caused.

"I think that concludes today's testing. I'd say it's safe enough," Jaune uttered, though the back of his mind told him the chest was just playing the long game.

He really only had one option, and that was to take the plunge, and plunge his hand into the chest.

So, he did exactly that, one side of his face squeezing up in the anticipation of losing an arm.

The chest, once again, did nothing. It didn't even clamp down with razor-sharp teeth and separate his arm from his body, which was a pleasant surprise.

Instead, he pulled out a notification screen's worth of goodies.

 **[You have opened an Opal Chest containing; 14 Adamantite Ore, 7 Eshanche Seeds, 6 Mithril Ore, 2 Gold Ore and 6 Grade V Water Dust Crystals!]**

Well, he definitely couldn't complain about that, especially with the benefit of the chest not being another Mimic. That had really, really sucked.

There were a couple new things in there, things he'd not previously acquired before. Like Gold Ore, which sounded great for a whole variety of reasons, and also Eshanche Seeds, which he could probably grow. Somehow. Jaune wasn't entirely sure on that part, but he knew he had quite a few seeds in his inventory.

Some that made sense, and some that really, really didn't. He wasn't even going to worry about those just yet, especially not down here. This wasn't a great time for it.

Jaune stood back up from the now empty chest, turning and facing the other thing he'd noticed when looking for said chest. "I guess that's the way we've got to go."

He completed his statement by pointing in the direction he was looking, towards the gigantic stonework door that sat embedded into the far end of the cavern, looking remarkably ominous.

"How did none of us notice that earlier?" Ilia asked, only just taking her eyes off of both Jaune and his flanking elementals to look at said gigantic, ominous door.

Jaune shrugged. "Probably something to do with the onslaught of Beowolves."

"Where does it lead?" Blake asked, closing the distance between where she had been standing to the doorframe, inspecting the solid craftsmanship that went into it. "More importantly, how do we even get it open?"

Jaune didn't have concrete answers to either question, but he did have a solution to that issue. "Let me take a look."

And he did take a look, stepping closer towards it and keeping his attention focused on the intricate details of its construction.

"Well, it's definitely a door."

He could feel the double glares that hit the back of his head, and he winced. Instead of turning to actually face Blake and Ilia, Jaune placed his hand against the door itself and pushed.

It swung open with a loud groaning sound, dim light spilling through as the opening widened, far enough now that Jaune could see in.

It was another cavern, surprise surprise, but this one was different. Not only was it incomprehensibly gigantic, but it was full of luminescent lichen, like the second floor had been.

That wasn't even the most crucial of details, however. All throughout the cavern were old buildings, carved from the very stone they sat on, scattered around the underground landscape like an old town. There didn't seem to be any rhyme or reason to their placement, and the winding paths that lay between them reached all the way up to the door Jaune had just opened.

"I guess this is floor eight." It was all he could think of to say.

* * *

Jaune was quickly coming to learn that "Floor" was a less a definitive term of floor by floor progress and more of a way of determining an area of challenge.

Like, for example, the fifteen-or-so Ursa he, Blake and Ilia had killed a short while ago, in Floor 8. They hadn't descended a floor afterwards, Jaune making sure to have scooped the chest into his inventory before they moved on, but they had continued onwards, into what seemed to be the ancient ruins of a market square.

Which, as it turned out, was Floor 9, at least, according to the System. He wasn't sure why it worked like that, only that he knew it did. It lined up with his prior experiences inside Dustcairn Mine, that had been almost horizontal in layout.

Speaking of the market square he was currently in, Jaune, Blake and Ilia were not its only occupants for the time being.

No, he couldn't leave the Level 70 Epic Boarbatusk and the two Level 70 Boarbatusk Matriarchs that were supporting it out of the population count, that would be rude.

Of course, the Matriarch's were barely a threat, even at Level 70. They had barely over six-thousand HP, so Jaune could easily kill them with a well-placed shot from Telum even without a critical, but the Epic was a bit different. It would take at least four arrows from Telum to kill, but that was implying that Jaune could even land that many shots, considering it was moving faster than he could track.

Well, moving faster in a straight line. It couldn't really turn, so that lead to his current situation.

With a very angry, now lone, Epic Boarbatusk charging straight at him. What had he done to deserve this?

A number of things, probably, but his plan wasn't to tank this thing head on, regenerating body or not.

Jaune _Phaseshifted_ out of reality for a single moment, and the porcine threat passed straight through him, slamming into the wall right behind him with a sickening crunch, cracks spider-webbing up the stonework and sending reverberations through the ground he stood on.

For a single second Jaune was made intrinsically aware of the potential of a massive cave-in, but the shaking passed within a moment, and Jaune remembered that he had to move.

And by move, Jaune really meant he had to stab the Boarbatusk in the back of the leg, severing the tendon and leaving it stranded on one rear leg, scrabbling in the dust in a failed attempt to round on its opponent.

Jaune spared it a single moment of thought, before he killed any concept of mercy for a beast like this Grimm, and he severed the other leg with a swing of Crocea Mors, before ramming his blade down and through its back, severing what he could only imagine was some kind of nervous center, because the entire creature stopped struggling, collapsing uselessly on the ground, already beginning to fade away.

He turned back to face his companions, who'd already dealt with the two Matriarch's, their weapons already sheathed. He hadn't gotten a clear line of sight on exactly how Ilia fought, or what she'd done to her target, but the charred corpse suggested something not particularly nice. Probably lightning, he was familiar with that scent.

Actually, he wiped his mind of that thought. Being able to tell what kind of Dust was used based on the scent of the Grimmflesh wasn't a pleasant skill. Useful, perhaps, but not at all appealing.

That floor had even leveled him up again, which he definitely appreciated. Dungeons were an excellent source of XP, that was for sure.

He grabbed a hold of the chest, after jabbing it with Crocea Mors once just in case, before putting it in his inventory next to the others. Opening them inside was taking too much time, and it didn't help that he really couldn't wrap his head around consolidating the new items when he got so many over a long period of time. He'd rather save them for some instant gratification later on.

He dismissed the notifications for drops he'd received without reading them. He was going to have to sort out his inventory soon, and he'd get to them when he got to them. Instead, he motioned to his allies to follow him, and decided to press on.

They were going deeper, towards a temple looking structure about a minutes walk from the market, and Jaune was worried. He didn't know what was coming. So far it had been weaker Grimm he could deal with, Beowolves, Ursa and Boarbatusks. Common Grimm he could kill without expending too much effort, even if they were higher tiers and higher levels.

Going deeper was more dangerous. That just made sense. They were going onto Floor 10, and with the difference in difficulty Jaune had experienced from Floor 4 to Floor 5, he was particularly worried. Round numbers meant milestones, and milestones meant spikes in challenge.

Tensions were running higher than ever before. "We might be walking into something serious here."

His remark was heard, but there was no verbal response. Instead, the shuffling of gear being readied carried across the cavern, and made sure to do the same, running a quick check through his inventory.

This was not a time for idle chatter, or for misplaced or mishandled weapons. This was a time for careful approaches and distinctly cautious action.

He kept his eyes peeled in the proverbial sense, his _Sixth Sense_ running pretty much on overdrive. He didn't want anything to sneak up on him if he could avoid it.

Noise.

He heard it before he saw the source of it. Chewing noises, like stone grinding on stone. There were few things that could make that kind of noise, and fewer still that were Grimm.

"Creeps," Jaune whispered, ducking low and taking cover behind a pillar only a few feet from the entrance to the temple. "Inside."

Blake and Ilia took cover behind the opposite pillar, nodding in response to his announcement.

He quickly motioned with his hands, instructing the two to stay put for the time being. He'd go in, check it out, and then return, and then they could plan an attack.

He didn't address what they'd do if his stealth failed him, but he was hoping it wouldn't come to that.

Jaune crept forwards, slinking quietly between the doors to the temple, and waited a moment for his eyes to adjust to the light, before continuing onwards, down the steps and towards the noise.

If he wasn't concerned about the potential threats within, he would have admired the scenery with awe. Giant statues of what looked like humans standing in various poses stood on either side of the immense stone steps, all facing the center, where a much smaller door sat, guarded by two more statues, though of what Jaune couldn't tell.

Now, though, halfway down the stairs, Jaune could see exactly what had been making the crunching noises.

He'd been right in his assumption, three Creeps were lingering in the center, occasionally gnawing on some stonework. The area they were lingering in was covered in bite marks, and one of the statues was missing a leg.

Jaune soon located that missing leg, as he noticed it was in the mouth of one of the smaller of the three.

The biggest of the three was what worried him most, though. It was nearly twice the size of the other two, and where they had Grimmbone on their hides, the largest of the three had crystals growing out of it, refracting what little light there was inside the temple.

Now he needed to return, departing back the way he'd come in, but first he was going to _Observe_ the Creeps, just in case it led to any crucial information.

Like, for example, how they were all Level 71, the two smaller Creeps were Alphas, and how the biggest was a Malignant Creep.

That was pretty crucial information.

Jaune backed up slowly, remaining as hidden as he could, sticking to the side of the steps. It didn't seem that the Creeps had noticed him, thankfully, but there was a good chance that wasn't because he was particularly stealthy. It was more that they weren't exactly the smartest of the Grimm out there.

"So?" Blake asked, once he'd gotten back outside the temple doors.

He was quick to relay the information back to both Blake and Ilia, but formulating a plan was going to take a little bit longer.

"It's not exactly a walking tank, so we can definitely kill it, I just don't know what it might be able to do. I've never seen a Creep with crystals on it before."

Apparently, neither had Ilia or Blake, which didn't bode well.

"How much health did it have?" Blake asked, already in thought. "If we can hit them without them expecting it we might be able to kill them pretty easily."

That had been Jaune's train of thought as well. "A little over twenty-four thousand. The other two are much lower, at just over four-thousand, so you two should easily be able to handle them. I can probably do more than enough damage with a _Mana Cannon_ and the guaranteed stealth crit, as long as we stay hidden. Shouldn't be a difficult shot, they're right in the open."

With their plan decided upon, all that was left was to execute said plan, which meant stealthing back inside the temple, remaining hidden, and then making sure that Jaune landed his shot.

Not too difficult, he was pretty good at aiming now. He rarely missed a spell, except on things that moved remarkably quickly. Not something this Malignant Creep, or any Creep, for that matter, was particularly known for.

The three remained completely silent as they stalked inside, careful where they placed each foot as they crept down the stairs, eyes firmly locked on the hostiles in front of them.

Jaune raised one hand as Blake and Ilia readied themselves, weapons held at the ready. The moment Jaune fired, they'd be in melee with the two Alphas, though not for very long.

He began charging the _Mana Cannon_ , hoping against all hope that it wouldn't garner any attention from the three Grimm.

It didn't. He though one of the Alphas had noticed him, but it had turned completely around to gnaw on a rock.

Just in case, though, Jaune pushed a bit of _Lightning_ _Infusion_ into the _Mana Cannon_. Just in case it didn't do enough damage, that extra ten percent of damage might just be enough to tick it over the required threshold.

He nodded briefly, Blake nodded back, and he released the _Lightning Infused Mana Cannon_ at the Malignant Creep as both Blake and Ilia leapt into the fray, their weapons tearing the Alphas apart.

The _Lightning Infused Mana Cannon_ struck the Malignant Creep with a bright flash, and Jaune watched in satisfaction as it took a step back, looked right at him, and roared.

Wait a minute, that wasn't right.

The crystals on its back flickered yellow.

Jaune's eyes widened as he dove sideways, a torrent of lightning belting from the Malignant Creep's maw and nearly frying him on the spot. If he'd been a second slower, he'd have been hit, but even as it was, he could hear the ringing in his ears, and the black trail of scorched stone that went from the steps and up the wall, charring the head of one of the statues, and across the ceiling was enough of a sign that this hadn't gone quite how he'd expected.

"Get to cover!" Jaune shouted as he dove behind the leg of one of the statues, wincing as another blast of lightning, weaker this time, rocked the inside of the temple.

The Malignant Creep still had full health, that was one of the worst parts. He'd hit it with an incredibly powerful spell, and it had absorbed it and was now doing its best to redirect it at him.

Not good. It seemed that unconventional combat was out, and conventional would have to do.

Jaune reached into his inventory and withdrew the only weapon he'd been yet to use thus far. Everything was a learning experience, his mother had once said. He didn't think this was quite what she meant, but oh well.

He shouldered Sandstorm, the massive LMG weighing a considerable amount, even in his hands, and swung out of cover, flicking off the safety and pressing down on the trigger.

The first round of 7.62mm fired out of the end of the barrel would not be the last, and despite the large amount of recoil, Jaune kept it trained in the general vicinity of the lightning-spitting Malignant Creep, the onslaught of bullets impacting against hardened hide and crystalline growth with incredible volume. Stealth had well and truly been thrown out the window with how loud this firearm really was.

His first burst of gunfire had to be halted as a reply was fired in his direction, a short spurt of lightning threatening to turn his head into charcoal, if it had hit.

He was lucky it hadn't, though considering he'd bruised the damn thing enough with his bullets he wasn't surprised it wasn't dead-accurate. He was surprised it wasn't dead, though, and he was very much not appreciating that it seemed to continue to tank the damage he was dealing.

He wasn't the only one firing at it. Blake was taking shots whenever she could, peeking around the cover she'd taken and firing, but her pistol-caliber rounds were not doing all that much.

Ilia, wisely, had decided that adding more lightning to the creature that had just belched lightning at them was not the greatest decision, and as such was basically sat on her hands behind cover, an annoyed look on her face.

Jaune stepped out of cover once more, holding Sandstorm as low as his arms went, holding down the trigger and stepping towards the Malignant Creep.

He could see the HP meter dropping, each bullet doing plenty of damage on their own, but it still wasn't enough. It was stalling the thing, though, it couldn't quite get its head high enough to hit Jaune, each round like a hammer, but it was getting closer.

Jaune kept the trigger held down, and let loose a shout of anger, accidentally activating a skill he hadn't used in a long, long time. _Battle Cry_ activated, and despite the fact that he hadn't dipped in any of his meters aside from SP, simply from the exertion of controlling the recoil of Sandstorm, he felt the other effect take hold.

One he'd never used or felt before. It gave a morale boost, that he had known, he'd read that when he'd gotten the skill in the first place, but he'd never really understood what that meant.

Now, though, as he felt as if he could practically taste victory, he understood exactly what it meant. It was a little extra push, that little bit of emotional edge that put him and his friends above those they faced.

It was a kind of motivation, and though he wasn't necessarily in the need of it at that exact moment, he'd be damned if he had to argue it didn't help just a little.

Sandstorm clicked empty, and Jaune swung it up and over like a baton, slamming it against the Malignant Creep's head with a loud and very wet thunk.

The Malignant Creep hit the stone floor and refused to get back up.

Jaune stomped one foot on its already-fading head, just in case.

Then he felt the weight of Sandstorm in his arms, and slumped down somewhat. He'd need to reload the weapon, but that could wait. He'd have to feed one-hundred-fifty rounds into a belt, so he'd do that when he had some down-time.

Now was not downtime. Now was notification time.

 **[Hallowed Bay: Floor 10 Cleared!]**

 **[A reward has appeared!]**

 **[For clearing half of Hallowed Bay you have been awarded +5 Menagerie Reputation!]**

 **[You've gained 705,761 XP and 15,620 Lien! You've acquired 5 Inert Dust, 4 Alpha Creep Bones, 1 Alpha Creep Hide, 4 Malignant Creep Bones, 2 Malignant Creep Hides, 1 Crimson Key and 1 Damascus Key!]**

Jaune appreciated the keys more than anything else in that list of items. He'd gotten quite a few from the past few floors, but he was starting to realize it was a crab-shoot when it came to them. They seemed to come at complete random.

He didn't even bother to check the chest that had appeared, like the ones before, instead just giving it a kick and then, when it proved it wasn't a Mimic, grabbing it and dropping it into his inventory.

"Jaune, what was that? I thought you said-"

Jaune interrupted Blake before she could continue. "I know. I wasn't exactly expecting it either. It absorbed the spell and redirected it. I think it had something to do with the crystals."

"Is it always like this?" Ilia asked, staring at the partially disintegrated corpse of the Malignant Creep.

Jaune shrugged. "Sometimes. It's not always bad surprises, but delving deep into a dungeon is probably not the best place for pleasant surprises. Good rewards, but balanced by the dangers in here."

Ilia looked back up the stairs, where bullet casings and scorch marks littered the ancient stone. "I can see that."

Jaune frowned, re-checking the notification. "We're halfway through the dungeon."

His words had both a positive side and a negative side, much like a half-full or half-empty cup.

"Meaning there are ten more floors?" Blake asked, simply for the clarification.

Jaune nodded. "That'd be the way math works, yeah."

Blake rolled her eyes. "We haven't been down here too long. We can continue for longer."

He'd been about to ask, but Ilia nodded along with Blake's statement, so he doubted he needed to even state the question. "Guess we're going through that door, then."

The door remained as ominous as it had been up until that point.

Jaune offered a weak "ladies first?" that was immediately shut down, and he slumped.

First into the unknown yet again.

* * *

It turned out that, for once, the unknown was not as dangerous as he'd expected. In fact, it was just a series of winding corridors.

A series of winding corridors that felt like they'd been wandering through for a few hours now. Or a few years.

Jaune was very confused.

"Haven't we been through this intersection before?" He asked, frowning.

Blake shook her head. "No, I'd recognize if we had. I've been leaving marks behind as we move."

"Marks like that?" Ilia asked, gesturing to a chunk of missing stone in one corner.

There was a moment where Blake just stared, before she spoke up again. "Yeah. Like that."

"I'm gonna be honest, I'm super lost. I don't even know where we came in anymore."

The admission hurt, but it was a definitive truth. If it weren't for the Hearthstones they were all carrying there was a good chance they'd've been stuck amidst these corridors for the rest of their considerably shortened lives.

"So now what? We just wander aimlessly and hope for the best?" Ilia asked, folding her arms and leaning against a wall.

Jaune shrugged. "Not much different from what we've been doing already. Let me see if there's something I can do to help. Maybe if I put some points into Intelligence?"

"If Weiss has proven anything, it's that intelligence doesn't equal wayfinding. Let's not be so hasty," Blake remarked, and Jaune cracked a smile.

"Wait, Weiss?" Ilia asked, a confused frown gracing her face. "Like-"

Jaune saved Blake the hassle by interjecting straight over the top. "So, you're suggesting Wisdom over Intelligence?"

Blake, grateful for the save, nodded quickly. "It seems a bit more prudent. All the intelligence in the world doesn't matter if you don't know how to use it, but even then, we don't know if a stat boost is what you need to help us out."

Jaune shrugged. "Call it a hunch, call it my semblance giving me little hints that I'm not quite where I need to be in terms of stats. One or the other."

"It's just telling you what you need?" Blake asked, one eyebrow raising in suspicion.

Jaune shook his head. "Not quite. It's more like I can feel a slight… feeling, I guess. It's pretty much just a hunch, but I didn't think of it on my own. Like my mind was led towards the idea. It's hard to explain, I just feel like I needed to be smarter, or wiser. Something to do with my mind, at the very least."

Ilia looked very concerned at who she was entrusting her safety to.

Jaune brought up his stats, checking through them. "I'll just drop ten points into WIS, see if that helps. That'll boost me up to 62, so it should help."

He did as he said, dropping ten of his Stat Points into WIS. It was two level-ups worth of Stat Points, but that being said, he was okay with it. He was doing this to progress further into the dungeon, so that meant he'd definitely make back the XP it had cost, even with the increased level-up costs.

He didn't feel too different, he never really did, but he could tell that something was up with the walls around him.

Something was definitely different about some of the stone. There was a specific pattern in the way it had been carved, a kind of texture to the grain, almost like wood grain.

It had been carved all in one direction, a pattern he only just now recognized from his own earthworking with _Terrakinesis_.

Which meant he could follow it back to its origin point.

"I think I've got it. Follow me."

He didn't wait for an affirmative, instead taking a step forward down one of the many corridors, hand trailing against the stonework, feeling the grain against his hand, the rock smooth against his hand.

Blake and Ilia were close behind, watching with concerned expressions as they progressed deeper and deeper within the maze-like structure, but it wasn't long before Jaune's claim was proven true.

Another door, slightly ajar already, a bright light pouring through the cracks.

Jaune pushed it open completely, and smiled as the notification popped up, this time directly depositing the chest into his inventory. He didn't even have to pick this one up, which he appreciated. It definitely meant it wasn't a Mimic.

He also noticed the room he'd walked into. More of an antechamber than anything else, it featured something that, for some strange reason, Jaune felt intrinsically drawn to.

A stone door, which, at this point, would have been strange to have been absent, but it was also inset with a large glowing gem, swirling white energy contained within its crystalline structure.

Jaune stepped towards it, as did Ilia and Blake, the three of them unable to take their eyes off of it.

He recognized it, or so he thought. It was so incredibly familiar, this feeling, like warmth and comfort wrapping around his very Aura.

Ilia stepped past him, awe in her eyes, and placed her hand against the crystal.

Her Aura began swirling around her hand, being drawn into the crystal. Blake did the same, standing next to her, her own Aura siphoning off her hand.

Jaune nearly did the same, but something in the back of his mind prevented him from outstretching his arm.

It wasn't technically his semblance that was stopping him. Ouroboros was wrapped around his arm, the serpent struggling against Jaune to prevent him from touching the crystal.

Callisto had a hold of Ilia, wrapping the girl in her arms and was tugging her back away from it, though it seemed the large bear was having some difficulty.

Freyja, Cadejo and Ishara were struggling with Blake, the boar and the scorpion pushing from the front and Cadejo having snagged a bit of her coat between his jaws, pulling her back.

It was tough going, but Ouroboros broke the hold first, snapping Jaune back from what he now realized was some kind of trance. "What...?"

He didn't have any more time to comprehend what had just happened, instead reaching for Blake and wrapping his arms underneath hers, pulling her back from where she was touching the crystal, yanking with all his strength.

Blake broke free after a moment of exertion, and Jaune stumbled backwards, Cadejo barely dodging to the side as Jaune, Blake, Ishara and Freyja landed in a tangle of limbs.

He scrambled out of the pile quickly, getting just in front of Ilia and pushing against the large paws of Callisto, lending what help he could to break the chameleon Faunus free.

Blake joined in a moment later, trying her best to push Ilia free, and suddenly, she was, the three of them tumbling backwards, landing atop Callisto in yet another tangle of limbs.

Jaune managed to extricate himself, turning to look at the crystal.

It almost looked satisfied, but it definitely looked more full now, with more white energy swirling within it.

At least Jaune now knew exactly why it looked so familiar.

It reminded Jaune a lot of a gigantic Soul Orb, just in a more crystalline fashion, and that hypothesis was more than confirmed with what it had just done.

It had just harvested the Aura directly from Blake and Ilia, and nearly him, too. If his summons hadn't sprung into action, there was a good chance it would have drained them so completely that it would have left them dried-out corpses. Not a good look.

He took Blake's hand and helped her up, doing the same with Ilia once she'd seemed to have recovered her mental state.

"What the hell was that?!" Ilia exclaimed in a mixture of confusion, shock and horror.

Yeah, Ilia was fine.

"It was trying to steal your soul," Jaune explained, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Uh, don't touch it."

He added the warning as an afterthought, just in case it hadn't been clear before.

"No shit, human," Ilia replied. "What the hell pulled me out? Was that an Ursa?"

Jaune gestured behind her. "That's Callisto. You should probably thank her."

Ilia turned around, noticed the large bear sitting on her rear, and quickly nodded in gratitude.

Callisto performed a very short, quiet roar in reply.

Jaune ran his hand through the fur of Cadejo as Blake ran hers through Freyja's. "Thanks, all of you. You saved our lives."

His other hand ran across the smooth chitin of Ishara, and Ouroboros curled back around Jaune's shoulders, head nuzzling against the blond.

Once he felt his summons had been thanked enough, which was never enough, in his honest opinion, he turned his attention back to the alluring crystal…

No, bad Jaune, don't fall for the stupid, pretty, beautiful crystal again!

It was definitely inset into the door in such a way that he couldn't open said door without first removing it somehow.

It was a lock, that was obvious, at least with the information he now had. A lock that harvested Auric energy and stored it.

"So, empty the crystal to unlock the door, right?" He spoke the words aloud, and seeing as Blake and Ilia weren't privy to his inner machinations, it came as a surprise to them both.

"How do you plan on emptying it without touching it?" Was Blake's question, and it was a fair question, but one he definitely had a concrete answer for.

"I don't need to touch it to use _Soul Harvest_ , so I can try and deplete it of energy from here."

"I'm sorry, what harvest?" Ilia exclaimed again, but Jaune, once again, tuned her out. He could tell that was really starting to get on her nerves, but he really didn't have the time to explain everything, and besides, he still didn't fully trust her.

Blake might, but Blake had a history of… debatable choices.

He reached his hand out, not touching the crystal, but not so far that he couldn't feel the pull it gave off. He fought that pull, of course, now that he was aware of exactly what it was, but it was strong.

At least, it was a strong pull all the way up until he activated _Soul Harvest_.

Then it became a very strong push, almost like the crystal was fighting back, trying its best to prevent him from doing exactly what he was about to do.

He'd never used _Soul Harvest_ like this before. The crystal didn't have an Aura, of course, so he doubted it would work on a person, but he was drawing Ambient Aura from a specific target rather than the general area, and it felt… different. It felt like he was causing the crystal pain, even though he knew that was impossible.

He was creating Soul Orbs at an incredible rate, though. One, two, five, ten…

He reached twenty-five Grand Soul Orbs before he was done, and only then did the crystal stop fighting back, now devoid of any light within.

 **[Hallowed Bay: Floor 12 Cleared!]**

 **[You've gained 1,000,000 Soul Harvest XP and 25 Grand Soul Orbs!]**

He took a step back, swaying slightly, and Blake quickly grabbed him before he could collapse. "You okay, Jaune?"

Jaune nodded slowly. "Yeah, yeah, just… gimme a sec to catch my breath."

He didn't know what was wrong. He felt strange, like his body was on fire, and yet, at the same time, he knew nothing was wrong. Physically, he was completely healthy. Mentally, too, no adverse effects.

Something just felt… off. Like the crystal had been alive after all.

No, that wasn't right. Jaune knew what it was the moment Cadejo closed the distance, the wolf providing mental and physical support.

Jaune had just harvested a lot of souls that had been trapped within a crystal for gods knew how long. A lot of negative energy, that was for sure.

He shook off the feeling as best he could. "We need to keep going. We're closer now than ever before."

Blake nodded, determination set into her expression. "I can take the lead if you want."

He shook his head, already moving towards the door. "I'm the only one of us that can take a hit and keep fighting without issue. I'll be fine."

She let the issue sit, not interrupting as Jaune swung the door open, stepping through, and she and Ilia followed close behind, a pattern they were more than used to by now.

Jaune wasn't surprised by the corridor. Everything was basically blending together now, and he could barely tell one floor from another, though he supposed that was deliberate.

He was momentarily impressed by the two statues of what looked to be ancient warriors standing guard at the door to the far end of the cavernous corridor.

And then, to top it all off, he was nearly caught off-guard by the gigantic Elder Deathstalker that stood in between his group and the far doors.

No cover, nowhere to hide, nothing but a straight line to a Grimm that looked a lot like the one from Initiation.

Of course, this one was a lot higher of a level, sitting at 72, with a rather large sum of HP to go with it. Jaune was definitely not looking forward to the next few minutes.

He crossed his fingers, hoping that it hadn't noticed them.

It had. It screeched in their direction and began rapidly scuttling towards them, pincers snapping open and closed in what would have been a very intimidating presentation if Jaune hadn't seen it before, but even still, the sheer numbers advantage it held was a definitive threat.

So Jaune figured he'd go with a tried and true strategy. A single Grimm wasn't much of a threat when he could hit it with a _Mana Tether_ and follow that up with his most powerful attack.

Electrus formed behind Jaune, the _Stormbolt_ nearly deafening everyone inside the dungeon as it vaporized a good chunk of the left side of the Elder Deathstalker, and the scorpion Grimm let loose a loud chittering scream as it floundered, scorched black ichor dripping onto the floor beneath it as it struggled to move.

It wasn't dead, though, and although it seemed to be a little stuck at the moment, that didn't mean it still wasn't a threat. Jaune could see those beady eyes staring straight at him, and he knew its injuries weren't going to be enough to prevent it from trying to kill him.

Already it was scuttling closer and closer, dragging its half-ruined carapace across the floor, the black murky trail it left behind beginning to obscure the rear end of the corridor.

Jaune responded to its approach by pulling out Predator and firing at it, Blake doing the same with Gambol Shroud and Ilia joining in with her own weapon, the occasional lance of lightning joining the barrage of gunfire, impacting against destroyed carapace and blackened Grimmflesh, the chittering increasing in volume and frequency as the Elder Deathstalker slowly but surely died.

He ejected the magazine from Predator, snagging it in his other hand and quickly holstered the handgun, reaching into his inventory and withdrawing a handful of rounds, methodically loading them into the empty magazine as he read his latest notification.

 **[Hallowed Bay: Floor 13 Cleared!]**

 **[A reward has appeared in your inventory!]**

 **[You have gained 2,903,089 XP and 12,672 Lien! You have acquired 1 Deathstalker Skull, 2 Elder Deathstalker Eyes and 5 Grade II Lightning Dust Crystals!]**

 **[You have leveled up once, and gained +5 Stat Points!]**

He finished loading the mag, slotting it back inside Predator and dropping the weapon back in his inventory. "That was fun."

Blake rolled her eyes. "Yeah, it was a real blast."

Jaune pushed past the decaying corpse, swinging open yet another door. "Man, I'm starting to get sick of this."

"Only six more floors to go," Blake remarked. "Hopefully it won't take too long."

Jaune didn't know what to expect the further they went down. So far it had been a mix of traps, puzzles and Grimm, so guessing at what the next floor held was a shot in the dark.

An ancient dormitory was not what he'd expected. "Huh."

Blake and Ilia filed in behind him, and the three of them shared a look before splitting up, searching around the large, stacked stone bed-frames.

It took a few moments before Jaune heard a voice. "Blake, human, over here! Found the next door, but it's locked!"

Blake was much closer to where Ilia was standing, so by the time Jaune had jogged over, she had already knelt down, trying to pick the lock, to no avail as of yet.

"Any luck?" He asked, despite the fact he already knew the answer.

Blake paused her attempts to glare at Jaune for a moment, before resuming. "It's a strange lock. It doesn't have any real pins to it, or if it does, I can't move them."

Jaune frowned. "This has to be a puzzle room, right? So there's gotta be a key in here somewhere. We've just got to find it."

He turned to look at the large expanse of beds. "Shouldn't take too long."

The sarcasm in his voice was so thick he could've used it as a springboard.

* * *

It took nearly an hour of searching before they found the key. It had reached a point where Ilia had just started throwing things aside in an effort to relieve her frustrations, but it had been that exact tactic that had led her to finding the key, which had been hidden underneath one of the bed-frames that she had practically toppled in her annoyance.

Ilia, almost silently, had simply picked up the key and walked over to the door, unlocked it, and startled Jaune when the notification for the floor being cleared popped up while he was halfway-through searching a ruined mattress.

He smacked his head against the top bunk as he jolted, before turning and glaring over at Ilia, who was doing a very good job of looking completely innocent.

He called out to Blake, who'd been on the furthest side, and she quickly joined both himself and Ilia by the door.

"Good find," He remarked dryly, rubbing the back of his head for an actual reason this time.

Ilia didn't respond to his sarcasm, instead gesturing for him to go through the door. "After you, meat shield."

Well, it wasn't necessarily an inaccurate statement, and he didn't have a good reason to dispute it, so he just pushed through the door, into a large chamber that featured a well-carved, domed ceiling, intricately carved patterns etched into the curvature.

Around the floor were bits and pieces of what looked to be some kind of ancient machinery, various cogs, gears and other mechanical components scattered into different-sized piles.

"Another puzzle room?" Jaune asked, almost to himself. That was strange, normally there was some kind of mini-boss on milestone floors.

Blake and Ilia joined him inside the room, and the moment the third of their group passed over the threshold into the fifteenth floor, the door slammed shut behind them.

Jaune resisted the urge to spin and look at the source of the noise, instead reaching into his inventory and withdrawing Crocea Mors, expanding the sheath into a shield, holding the sword calmly. "Something's in here with us."

His concerns were not unfounded. Something was in one of the piles of ruined machinery, he could see it shifting slightly, the occasional clang of metal colliding with metal causing his nerves to twitch. If it weren't for _System Mind_ he'd have no doubt he'd be panicking right now.

The pile of ancient machinery unfolded, and a single eye stared straight at him, burning with fury.

 **[Machina Gigas (Epic Geist)]**

 **[Level 75]**

 **[HP: 185,625/185,625]**

Jaune dove out of the way of a gigantic metal limb that slammed into the ground right where he'd been standing, grabbing Ilia as he fell and pulling her out of the way of the stomp that had nearly crushed her.

She was panicking, which, considering the circumstances, was entirely fair. Ilia, unlike Jaune and Blake, was not a Hunter, nor was she familiar with the serious kinds of danger that he constantly found himself in. This wasn't Shai-Hulud or Wyvern levels of danger, but it wasn't too far off.

He dove out of cover, gesturing to Blake to take care of Ilia, or at the least snap some sense into her, and quickly grabbed the attention of the tripod-like Machina Gigas.

Not that it hadn't kept its attention focused on him already, as another metallic fist nearly clipped him, sending the entire chamber shuddering from the impact.

He was lucky this thing wasn't all that fast.

Unfortunately, it had every other advantage. Like, for example, the fact that it was nigh-bulletproof, as one of Jaune's rounds from Predator skipped off the ancient metal, barely doing anything to the Machina Gigas.

Jaune swore under his breath as a large metal limb nearly kicked him into the ceiling. That had been a close one.

He hit the thing with a concentrated burst from his _Spinning Mana Bullet_ , but even that simply splashed against the metal. This thing was armored, so much so that even his Mana was having trouble dealing damage. That didn't bode well for his near future.

He rolled again, just trying to stay clear of the constant attacks, but he could tell his evasion was starting to aggravate the giant golem, and he knew he needed an actual plan. Otherwise this adventure was going to end with him as a large stain on the ground, and possibly the wall if he got hit hard enough.

An idea struck him like a metal fist nearly did. _Ferrokinesis_.

He _Phaseshifted_ through a swinging blow that would have removed his head from existence had it landed, becoming corporeal at just the right moment as he slid underneath the Machina Gigas and placed both his hands on its left leg, hoping that this wasn't about to get him killed.

 _Ferrokinesis_ took hold of the limb, and suddenly Jaune could feel the Geist within the Machina Gigas. A very, very strange feeling, almost like there were veins he could feel infesting the machinery.

He pushed hard against those veins, forcing the metal to crush them, and he could see the HP meter of the Machina Gigas suddenly drop dramatically, lowering by nearly sixty-thousand.

He could also see a now released leg-shaped chunk of metal tipping towards him, now disconnected from the rest of the Machina Gigas.

Jaune scrambled backwards, just getting clear as it slammed into the floor.

Of course, the Geist within the Machina Gigas didn't care too much for what Jaune had just done, and if he hadn't been so concerned with the falling ex-leg, he'd have noticed the arm swinging at him.

It hit him in the chest, and it felt like he was on the receiving end of a truck.

"Urgh!" He groaned as it hit him, and he went flying backwards, smashing into the wall and peeling off, the feeling of a plethora of broken bones very, very prevalent.

That attack had completely shattered his Aura, and he wasn't surprised. The impact against the wall had done the rest of the damage, and he could feel that multiple ribs weren't quite where they were supposed to be, including one that was currently sticking out of his back, having punctured straight through his left lung.

He coughed up a literal lungful of blood onto the stone, but he could already feel his body stitching itself back together. He could even move his neck now that the majority of his spine wasn't turned to splinters, and he glanced towards the Machina Gigas, now down to only two of three legs, currently attempting to hit Blake and Ilia, its attention being diverted by the two.

It was evident that Blake and Ilia had fought together a multitude of times before. Every movement was practised and honed to a level that even Jaune and Blake didn't share, though there were multiple reasons for that.

Ilia strafed sideways as Blake flickered into shadows, leaving behind a target that kept the attention of the Machina Gigas for a single moment before the clone was destroyed, allowing the two of them to land hits against the metallic torso.

They were close to the mask it wore, but every time any attack got close enough to potentially hit the mask, the metal would shift, repositioning the face within the core.

Well, that pretty much confirmed that the mask was the weak spot.

Jaune could move his arms, now, and he lifted himself up, feeling the bones and muscles in his legs reforming as he tried to use them. He was a little shaky, but he was getting closer to being able to move, his regeneration prioritizing movement over tertiary injuries, such as the multitude of bleeding gashes all over his body, and the near infinite bruising that was more likely to make his skin purple, blue and green with the occasional patch of his usual coloration.

Combined tactics time, or so Jaune thought. Land his hands on the torso, sever the Geist's connection, and then take out the Geist itself. Three step plans were his forte, this should be no problem.

He stepped forwards, somewhat off-balance, but he quickly regained that with a shake of his head as he broke into a run, very quickly closing the distance between where he had been laid out and where the Machina Gigas was, hands splayed, ready to execute the plan.

Or, if it failed, ready to be executed by the giant metal golem. One or the other. He knew which one he'd prefer.

He slid underneath a limb, thankful that the Machina Gigas' attention was elsewhere, and jumped, landing feet-first on its back, activating _Surface Walk_ to keep him firmly affixed to the torso segment, and he placed his hands against the cold metal.

The moment he landed the Machina Gigas knew something was wrong, backing up rapidly and attempting to twist and reach Jaune, limbs unable to quite get the angle they needed to knock him loose.

He remained attached, focus entirely on his _Ferrokinesis_ as he found those shadowy internal veins, and he began severing those connections, shaping the metal around and closing it upon the Geist's internals.

He could feel it writhing in pain, and he could tell it was trying to throw him off, but his attention remained solely on his _Ferrokinesis_ , unconcerned about anything else. This was the only way to win against a metallic behemoth like this.

The Machina Gigas might not have been able to reach him, but that wasn't the only way it had of hurting Jaune.

It backed up faster and faster, until it crashed into the wall back-first, but even as Jaune gritted his teeth from the impact, he was saved by the fact that the walls were round, so the Machina Gigas couldn't quite use its full size against him.

It still hurt like all hell, he wasn't going to lie, and it broke what little Aura he'd managed to regenerate, but he didn't care. He kept concentrating, until he found the final strand.

He closed the final connection, and found himself falling, barely managing to scramble out of the way as the torso became just another chunk of metal, nearly crushing him as it fell to the ground.

Jaune withdrew Predator, lined up his shot, and pulled the trigger, watching in abject satisfaction as the floating Geist suddenly found itself with a large hole in its mask.

Unlike all the commotion before, the Geist died silently, simply content with fading away in a near instant.

Only once it had completely disappeared and Jaune had received the notification did he slump over and groan.

 **[Hallowed Bay: Floor 15 Cleared!]**

 **[A reward has dropped!]**

 **[You have gained 2,362,605 XP and 23,100 Lien! You've acquired 23 Inert Dust, 1 Geist Mask and 50 Low Steel Ingots!]**

Great, he thought. He would've cheered, but that would mean having to move, and he really didn't like that idea. Right now he just wanted to stay laid out on the floor. It was nice on the floor. Comfortable.

Well, okay, it wasn't comfortable, but it was at least not as painful as standing. Standing, right now, was the last thing he wanted to do.

"Jaune, are you alright?"

That was Blake. He could tell from the fact that it sounded like Blake, which meant he was already off to a good start on voice recognition. No severe brain damage, that was good.

He lifted one arm wearily and gave Blake a thumbs-up. It would have to do.

She dropped in next to him, quite literally, in fact, seeing as he was in what was effectively a metal pen, surrounded on all sides by no-longer-possessed metal limbs, and placed her hand on his side, heaving briefly to flip him over onto his back.

"Oh, hey Blake, when did you get here?" Jaune asked, now no longer staring at the floor. Instead, now his gaze was directed at the ceiling, with Blake's head in his periphery.

Blake raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Jaune nodded. "Yeah… just gonna relax for a bit. Everything sort of hurts all over, and it's probably gonna take a bit before that subsides, you know?"

He gestured down at his leg, where a gash was slowly stitching itself back up. "See?"

Blake winced. "Doesn't look great, if I'm being honest. Good job, though."

Jaune grinned, though it was with far more exhaustion than usual. "You two did great too."

He sat up now, arms stretching as he checked the offending limbs for any significant injuries that were yet to heal. They seemed fine, now, which was good, but there was still a lot of bruising that was still yet to heal.

Blake held out her hand and Jaune took it, the black-haired girl pulling him up to a standing position.

He groaned in mild agony as a particularly prominent cut resealed itself along his back. "That was a close one. Too close."

Ilia clambered up the side of one of the piles of wreckage that had once been the Machina Gigas. "The human's still alive?"

It almost seemed like she was warming up to him. Jaune turned to face her, pulling aside his coat and showing off the large cut on his abdomen. "Barely."

Ilia paled. "How the-"

He couldn't help but laugh. "I've told you already."

She looked stunned, and Jaune clambered out of the metallic pen, Blake following close behind.

She shook her head, shaking aside the previously gruesome image. "I was gonna say something's on the ground over there." She gestured over her shoulder, towards the center of the room.

Jaune dropped down, wincing as his strained muscles replied in anger, and he nearly stumbled as he landed. Luckily for his reputation he didn't collapse, managing to ignore the intrinsic urge to stumble.

Instead, he focused his attention on what he could see in the center of the room. And what a sight to behold!

"What am I looking for?" He asked, looking around.

Ilia stepped over a chunk of broken stone and bent down, grabbing whatever it was on the floor and tossing it at Jaune, who caught it in a feat of agility that impressed only him.

He _Observed_ the item, twisting it around and admiring the craftsmanship.

 **[XII. The Hanged]**

 **[Artifact]**

 **[An artifact of a long-past age, this device affixes to the wrist and fires a long cable with a specialised hook on the end, which can be retracted and extended at will. The cable is stored within a separate portable dimension.]**

Jaune's eyes widened. He was literally holding a grappling hook. An actual, real, legitimate grappling hook. Jaune's eyes widened even further.

He put it on his arm, watching as the device attached itself, small limbs unfolding to wrap around his wrist, and he aimed at the ceiling, very carefully.

"Jaune, what are you doing?" Blake asked, wholeheartedly considering just keeping her eyebrow permanently raised whenever Jaune was involved.

Jaune clicked his hand down, and a hook fired out from the device on his wrist, impacting against the roof with a quiet hiss.

"Huh."

He squeezed his hand again, and was suddenly pulled upwards.

Too fast, Jaune realized, as he smashed his face into the ceiling.

Ilia burst into muffled laughter as Blake turned away, one hand covering her face as she slowly shook her head.

Jaune slowly lowered himself back to the ground, very deliberately looking anywhere else. "I, uh… still need some practice. Not an easy thing to learn, I guess."

He turned to face the door, detaching the hook and reeling it back into the device. At least that part was easier, and he didn't accidentally brain himself with it.

His attention returned to the door, which was currently ajar. "So, we wanna go on? Cause I'd be alright with a quick break to regenerate my Aura."

Blake looked towards the door and then back to Jaune. "That's… probably a good idea."

* * *

Once Jaune had rested, and by rested he meant 'used _Meditation_ to completely refill all meters', Jaune and his companions pushed further into the dungeon.

The sixteenth floor had been almost a letdown in comparison to the fifteenth. Just another room full of rubble, but Jaune had to admit, at least this rubble didn't spontaneously come to life and try to kill him.

Instead, it just hampered their progress up until Jaune tried _Terrakinesis_ on it. Then it didn't do much, aside from whatever Jaune demanded of it.

The seventeenth floor had been a bit more of a threat. Grimm Jaune didn't recognize had dug through the walls, leaving long, winding tunnels that Jaune could just barely fit into, if he'd wanted to actually go in them.

He hadn't. Nor did he need to, luckily.

The moment they'd stepped inside the seventeenth floor, which was almost indistinct from the fifteenth, aside from the rivulets of water that ran down the walls, a cluster of Level 70 Centinels had sprung from the ceiling.

The creepy centipedal Grimm had attempted to spin in his direction, for some reason, mandibles chittering up until Blake cut the first one's head off, leaving the body to jitter and flop on the wet stone floor.

Ilia had electrified the second with a stab that left it twitching in a way Jaune really didn't like, so he leant a hand, or rather, a foot, stomping down hard on the insectoid Grimm's midsection, severing it in two.

The third died to a shot from Telum as it tried to regain the advantage, crawling up the wall. Jaune pinned it in place with an arrow, already dismissing it as he moved onto the next target.

The target that Blake had just sliced into three pieces with a rather impressive feat of maneuverability.

Okay then, Jaune would move onto the last target, the one that Ilia had just shish-kebab'd with her weapon.

Jaune sighed. He didn't have a right to complain that the fight had been remarkably easy, but he'd wanted to at least use more than just Telum. It almost felt a little wasteful.

Blake and Ilia were already moving on, though, towards the next door, the eighteenth floor, and whatever it held in store for them.

The door itself didn't bode well. Solid steel, arranged in bars, it wouldn't look out of place in an ancient dungeon.

Well, an ancient dungeon where they held prisoners, not an ancient dungeon like what he was delving through. Although it could be both, or neither, he really was losing track.

Daylight seemed like a distant memory.

"Jaune, hurry up."

Oh yeah, right.

Jaune jogged over, dismissing the notification without so much as a brief glance, instead focusing his attention solely on what was beyond the door yet again, as Ilia swung it open.

Ilia and Blake both took a very distinctive step back, pupils dilating as Jaune felt his entire body twitch, _Sixth Sense_ lighting up like he was surrounded on all sides by an imposing force, and the worst scent overcame his nostrils.

"You two are getting it too. That doesn't bode well."

Despite the fact that he was in the running for 'most obvious thing said ever, by anyone', Jaune found himself more concerned about what could possibly be in there than how he was getting that message across.

So, as usual, Jaune stepped in first, one hand at the ready. Whatever was in here was going to take a handful of Mana first, and then Jaune would stop to ask it questions.

From the door led a series of branching paths, organized like a series of streets, but instead of houses surrounded by roads, there were instead steel-barred cells not unlike a prison. At least five rows' worth of cells, occasionally broken up by a crossing path that connected to the others.

The paths weren't the most concerning parts of this prison floor, however. What was far more concerning was the amount of skeletons that lay within. Skeletons and other near-skeletal corpses.

Jaune paled as he moved through. Some of the bodies were half-sunken-in, some small, some larger.

Adults and children, equally treated. Some of these corpses were more recent than others, if the smell was anything to go off of.

He kept moving, very aware of his movements and the movements of Blake and Ilia. He was even more aware of the noise they were making, and he resisted the urge to shush Ilia as she choked back a sob. Blake was teetering on the edge, and once again he found himself incredibly thankful for _System Mind._ Without that, he'd be struggling very hard not to lose his composure. Even now, with it, it was a tough fight.

"Please let there be some survivors, please let there be some survivors."

He repeated the mantra under his breath over and over, clenching his other hand into a fist and then releasing it to the rhythm of his chant. He just didn't want all of this to be for nothing.

They kept creeping through the cells, as quiet as possible, trying not to think about what had to be at least a thousand victims. He found it almost strange that none of them appeared to have been restrained, but he shook that aside. Where was there for these people to go? They were already deep within a dangerous dungeon, and they were locked inside cells.

Jaune twitched, almost sensing movement before he saw it. There, in the cell three down and two to the left! A small hand, twitching back and forth.

He darted towards it, Blake and Ilia spotting the motion just after he had and chasing behind him, sticking close.

A girl, small and frail, almost drained of life. She was twitching occasionally, but her eyes stared dead ahead, unblinking.

Jaune stuck his hand through the bars without a second thought, gently waving them in front of the young girl.

She gave no response.

"Jaune… there are more survivors…" Blake whispered, and Jaune whipped around, noticing that there were more populated cells. The girl seemed to be alone in hers, aside from some definitely-not-alive people, but there were plenty of other living people, all in the same state as her.

"What's wrong with them?" Ilia asked, keeping her voice as low as possible.

Jaune shook his head, not trusting his voice. Then, realizing he couldn't really carry out a conversation without speaking, spoke up anyway. "They're in some kind of catatonic state, like a trance or something. They aren't dead, thank the gods, but they aren't really alive, either. There's gotta be a way to break the control somehow."

Something clinked against metal, back near where they'd come from.

The three of them spun quickly, drawing and aiming.

A slight glow in the dark, floating in the air. Another metallic clink sounded out, and Jaune charged a _Mana Cannon_ , the glow of the Mana distorting his vision slightly, but not enough to prevent him from seeing what was drifting towards them.

It was a Grimm Jaune definitely didn't recognize. Almost like a floating orb with a series of blade-tipped tentacles dangling beneath it, Jaune kept his aim steady, waiting to see if it would move any closer.

It didn't. Instead, it remained floating a short distance away. Jaune didn't even know if it had seen them, or if it could even see. He couldn't make out any eyes, unless the orb was the eye.

One of the tentacles slowly drifted out to the side, and gently rapped against one of the cell bars, a delicate ringing filling the eighteenth floor.

It was almost demanding that he fire at it. It was just floating there as if it wanted to see what Jaune would do. He could tell it could see them, now, he could feel its gaze. He involuntarily shivered.

 _Observe_ only gave him the name and level of the Grimm, but it was enough information to get him started. A Level 76 Alpha Seer.

The words really meant nothing to him. He'd never heard of a Seer before, but it didn't strike him as a particularly dangerous kind of Grimm, unless that giant eye let it fire out lasers. If it did, well, he'd at least called it.

"Do we attack?" Ilia asked, a frown on her face. She didn't know what to make of the enemy she was staring down, and neither did Blake, from the look on her face.

Jaune fired his fully-charged _Mana Cannon_.

The Seer popped like an over-filled balloon, tendrils chiming as its remnants hit the ground.

Blake lowered her weapon. "That was a bit anticlimactic."

Jaune shook his head. "Last time I said that I had my arm removed. Keep your guard up. The floor's cleared, but these people are still catatonic. Whatever's holding them here, it's deeper in."

His words made a lot of sense, even if he was pulling them out of thin air. His Semblance seemed to agree with them, at least, a feeling of affirmativeness overcoming a part of his mind as he made the assumption. He couldn't really explain it, either, which was disconcerting.

That also wasn't important right now, so he filed that away for later. "There's a door back here, seems to be the way forward. Two floors left, so I guess what we're looking for is on that last floor."

He walked towards it and unflinchingly stepped through, finding himself face to face with a small antechamber, a couple stone benches laid out, one cracked down the middle, the remnants of a small fire-pit half-full of old wood ash.

He'd chided Blake only moments before about verbalizing how anticlimactic it was, but he nearly did the same out of reflex.

Up until a notification startled him.

 **[Rest Area Discovered!]**

 **[You have discovered a Rest Area! Rest Areas serve as a universal location within most Dungeons, where you can establish a base-camp to rest, recuperate and restock! Rest Areas can be upgraded to provide more bonuses and effects, at the cost of resources, once the potential upgrade has been unlocked! There are a number of upgrades to be constructed, and a number of unlocks to be uncovered!]**

 **[All Rest Areas share the same pocket universe! Any upgrades or unlocks constructed within a Rest Area in one Dungeon will appear in all other Rest Areas in all other Dungeons, as they are all technically the same Rest Area!]**

Jaune blinked. "All in the same pocket universe?" He asked aloud, to which Blake and Ilia both looked to him for some kind of explanation.

He didn't even bother with a brief summary, seeing as how he barely understood it, instead reading word for word the notification to the two of them.

Ilia seemed pretty lost, but Blake seemed to grasp the basics. "So, you can upgrade this place?"

Jaune shrugged. "Seems like it? I don't actually have any of the materials to do that, though, considering…" He trailed off, peering at the semi-used fire-pit. "This wants Gneiss Chunks, and I don't have any of those."

He looked around. "There's a few other spots, too. A spot for what looks like two beds, a spot for a bookcase, these benches can be repaired. Stuff like that."

"Does it matter right now?" Ilia asked impatiently.

Jaune shook his head. "No, it doesn't. Maybe if I had the materials, but I don't. Let's keep going."

The final floor lay ahead of them. The final door he'd have to open.

He grabbed the handle and swung it open.

* * *

 **Well, there we go. Sixteen-thousand words of dungeon delving. Those of you who don't like the dungeon crawling will be thankful to know that not only did I shorten this quite a bit, but it should be the last proper 'delving chapter'. Of course, I like it, so...**

 **Anyway, lemme dive deep into the reviews! Man there are a lot of 'em, so if I don't get to yours, know that I did read it!**

 **smaiti96: If we're talking about Ilia, Jaune's attitude towards her was tempered by Blake. If we're talking about Yuma, Trifa and Keras, well, I don't think Jaune was entirely worried about them to begin with.**

 **HAIL KING DELIRIOUS: Technically? I'm not 100% sure on that, but it's also a 'reference' to the literal myth of Ouroboros, the snake that eats its own tail. Technically both Greek and Egyptian mythology.**

 **Sperance: Very soon we'll have some more perspective on Ruby and the rest of Team RRYN, so that should be fun to write!**

 **Argus456: Technically it wasn't a definitive time-skip mechanic and more of a 'Jaune is absorbed in his work' sort of skip, but the idea is a good one, I'll have to tinker with it a bit. If I had literally any free time I'd probably read through The Games We Play, but there's a few reasons why this chapter was so late, and not having any time is one of them.**

 **Nagisa Tr: We're close to being done, honestly. I feel like I'm reaching the end-point, so I'd say maybe two or three more chapters left. The next stop, though, you'll have to wait and see!**

 **NyaNyaKittyFace: Honestly, going off on tangents is pretty much how I write, so you don't gotta apologize for that! All your reactions are once again greatly appreciated. I did have to make a quick change to what Blake's Artifact was going to be, it's no longer XII. The Hanged, as I had originally suspected, so Blake will be getting hers at a later date, but I do have a couple plans with some artifact replication, of sorts. Still gotta work that out.**

 **Ints: To be honest, they sort of always were the villains of RWBY, or at least some of the villains. There's a lot of them, now, but the White Fang sort of feel like a lost cause after so long. The only way to fix that is to start anew, really. I've got a few plans with what I'm going to do with them, but they're mostly basic concepts. I still haven't fleshed out many of the future details just yet.**

 **armentho: I do have a couple concepts like that planned, but one of the biggest involves old memories and some older weapons. Should make for an interesting few plot points, hopefully. Fauna and Flora don't have as much of a use, aside from what I've already added to the System, but I am working on what I'm calling an 'Elite Skill', which, whilst still in development, will be quite cool. Guitar will have a few more features soon, I'm working a couple things into the Instrumentation skill. Jaune the Bard may be a thing.**

 **Shadow of God: Technically, he could, but also technically, with the System, he doesn't need to. Sshhh, I didn't tell you that :P**

 **Guest: 3**

 **Grifith Moses: I had to put that rest, unfortunately. It was just not really a feature I liked, so RIP relationship meter.**

 **razmire: He was pretty close a few times. It's been one hell of a dungeon dive, that's for sure.**

 **jedimasterb10: I don't think they'll run into the Nuckelavee just yet. They haven't reached Kuroyuri, they're just coming through a few earlier settlements.**

 **Handwran: I sincerely doubt I'll ever be able to reach a point where I'm completely funded in that way. Not that I don't appreciate any amount of money thrown my way, I really, really do, but that's asking for a lot. As is, it's an appreciated amount that means I don't have to work extra hours, leaving more free time to write. Or at least usually, this month has been quite hectic.**

 **Tyler: Normally it's a weekly basis, but as of late it's been a bit difficult to stick to that. I'm working on returning to that schedule though!**

 **NuclearPenStrokes: By all means, send me a PM if you wanna chat! I'd love to hear your ideas!**

 **ShadowPillar: It seems that the general consensus for Jaune's next summon is to be the Bashenga, so we'll see that very soon! He didn't have enough Soul Orbs to create a new summon, but that's changed since then with this chapter! Glad you're liking Systema!**

 **tik71: Unfortunately, for a number of reasons that I haven't even bothered to explain in-universe, Jaune's inventory cannot store anything other than inanimate objects. I could explain that in-universe, but as of right now trying to figure out how to naturally cram that in without Nora around is gonna be a bit tricky. I'll work on it.**

 **FireFlux: Oh no you're paying attention to my earlier writing and my consistent mistakes! The horror! In all seriousness, I really appreciate that you've given Systema a chance. It can be a lot to start with, which is why I tried to break up the info-dump with as much 'dumbass humor' as I could. I like to think I've improved my writing in the technical aspect since I've started, but there are a number of mistakes that do tend to slip through on occasion. I rarely have to go back and edit, but on the occasions I do I don't usually notice, which is a shame. One point I will make is that technically the plural of Ursa is Ursai, but I think Ursa is just a little less confusing. Also you weren't entirely too far off with your guess at to what lay within the depths of Hallowed Bay. Also never apologize for anything you say within my reviews. I don't ever expect anyone to 100% like my stuff, and I really, really appreciate it when people take the time to actually say anything about it, and even the people that do try to just say dipshit stuff to insult me would have to try really, really hard to do that.**

 **I gotta cut off the reviews here, sorry for those I didn't get to! Really, I am, I read and take in everything y'all say, so don't worry! I just really wanna get this chapter out ASAP.**

 **Thank you all for sticking with this, and if you ever want to help support my writing, I have a Pa Treon, if you ever have a bit of spare change. It has perks!**

 **And, as always, see you next chapter!  
~AFatFlyingWhale**


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